- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jul 8, 2024
- Event Description
On July 8, Arunachal police detained two anti-dam activists claiming that they were likely to cause a 'public order issue', on the same day that the Union power minister visited Itanagar to review the status of several hydropower projects
The day-long detainment of two anti-dam activists on Monday, July 8, in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, was equivalent to harassment and a violation of the democratic rights of indigenous communities, said several environmental and human rights organisations.
The state police arrested lawyer and anti-dam activist Ebo Mili and convenor of the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum Dugge Apang on July 8, claiming that they were likely to cause a “public order issue”. The two activists were later released on the same day after signing a bond that they would not participate in activities for the next year that might ‘breach the peace’.
The activists, incidentally, were hoping to organise a peaceful demonstration in the city on July 8 and meet Union power minister Manohar Lal Khattar in person and hand over a memorandum at the Itanagar secretariat, for which they were in the process of taking necessary permissions from the deputy commissioner. Khattar was in the city to review hydropower projects with state government officials, including the controversial 11,000-megawatt Upper Siang multipurpose power project.
Two anti-dam activists were detained for an entire day
On the morning of July 8, Arunachal police arrested lawyer and anti-dam activist Ebo Mili at Itanagar. The police took Mili into preventive custody. On the same day, Arunachal police also arrested Dugge Apang, another anti-dam and pro-river activist in Itanagar. Apang is the convenor of the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum (SIFF).
According to the Indian Express, the Itanagar police said in a statement that they took this action after “reliable sources” reported that both Mili and Apang were “likely to disrupt the forthcoming public meeting involving the Honorable Chief Minister and Union Ministers” on July 8 and “attempt to cause a public order issue.” The police took this “preventive action”, to “maintain public order”, they said in a statement quoted by Hindustan Times.
The Arunachal police ultimately released both Mili and Apang on Monday evening — but only after both signed a bond promising not to participate in further activities that may be considered “breaching the peace” for one year.
Mili is no stranger to being apprehended for crimes he has not committed. In August last year, the state police detained him for staging a peaceful protest outside a banquet hall in Itanagar, where the Bharatiya Janata Party government was engaged in signing memoranda of understanding with public sector undertakings to continue the construction of 12 stalled hydropower projects in the state.
As per the Indian constitution, it is not against the law to protest peacefully, Mili, a lawyer, told The Wire on July 9.
“I was made to sign a bond, and placed under monitoring for one year,” Mili told The Wire. “But yesterday the police could not file an FIR against me because I had not done anything to breach the peace, so they made me sign another bond for one more year.”
As per news reports, the state police detained both Mili and Apang under Section 128 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) that states that an Executive Magistrate can require a person to show cause why the person should not be ordered to execute a bond or bail bond for his good behavior for a period of time not exceeding one year, if the Magistrate feels that there is reason to believe that the person could commit a cognizable offence.
While the law permits the police can detain individuals if they are “apprehensive” that their actions might affect public order, the law also makes it clear that this power should not be abused, Mili told The Wire.
Violation of democratic rights
The Indian Express quoted members of the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum as saying that they had no intention to disrupt the day’s events and that the activists were in the process of seeking permission from the Deputy Commissioner for a peaceful demonstration in Itanagar town, to hand a memorandum to Khattar in person at the Itanagar Secretariat.
The Wire accessed a copy of the letter that the activists were hoping to file for seeking permission for this. The letter clearly states that permission was being sought for a “peaceful demonstration against the rampant building of dams and the sale of our land”, and specified the location of the demonstration in Itanagar as well.
Several environmental and human rights organisations have come out in support of Mili and Apang, and condemned their “unlawful” detainment. The Centre for Research and Advocacy, Manipur, (CRA) and Affected Citizens of Teesta (ACT) expressed their concerns at the detention of both Mili and Apang in a press note on July 8.
“The arbitrary detention of Advocate Ebo Mili and Mr. Dunge constitute a harassment and violation of fundamental rights of indigenous human rights defenders for raising legitimate concerns with large hydropower projects over the Siang and Dibang River basins in Arunachal Pradesh,” the CRA and ACT said in their press note.
The duo’s “arbitrary detention” without an arrest warrant represents “a violation of democratic rights enshrined under India’s constitution and the indigenous peoples’ rights, as guaranteed under the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007”, the press note declared.
The press note also called on the Government of India to stop the “arbitrary detention” of Mili and Apang and “to stop all forms of harassment of indigenous human rights defenders for asserting their indigenous rights and concerns with unsustainable development”.
How is it even possible to detain the two activists when they hadn’t done anything, and when they hadn’t even been given an opportunity to present their letter to the Deputy Commissioner to seek permission for the peaceful march, asked a member of the local community who did not want to be named.
“They’re even trying to control how we think, let alone act,” the resident, from an indigenous community in the state, told The Wire. “This is very concerning, also because of the timely coincidence of the [amended] FCA which cites national security and defense as a reason for getting away with such projects that have a huge impact on our lands and people.”
The Union government recently amended the Forest Conservation Amendment Act of 1980. One of the new clauses that the legislation includes is that projects coming up in areas within 100 km of India’s borders will not require forest clearance, unlike before. Experts have pointed out how this, and a few other new clauses added as part of the amendment to the FCA can result in huge tracts of forest land being opened up to developmental activities and tourism.
Minister reviews the status of hydro projects
The Union minister for power, Manohar Lal Khattar, arrived at Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, on July 8.
“Reviewed various ongoing hydropower projects, comprehensive scheme of transmission & distribution and the revamped distribution sector scheme in the state,” Khattar posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, on July 8. “Arunachal Pradesh has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to enhancing its power infrastructure, resulting in significant strides in sustainability.”
Chief minister Pema Khandu who also took part in the discussions claimed that they are “committed to overcoming any challenges” to expedite the completion of hydropower projects in the state. “These projects are not only vital for meeting the state’s power needs but also for contributing to the national grid and boosting our economy,” he tweeted.
Among the 60-odd hydropower projects being planned in the state is also the 11,000 megawatt Upper Siang multipurpose project, which has been pushed forward as a counter to China’s dam on the Brahmaputra. However, local communities have raised several concerns including loss of crucial forest and community land, among others.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Lawyer
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Jul 7, 2024
- Event Description
Thousands of people gathered for a glimpse of the funeral procession of the slain Pakistani rights activist Gilaman Wazir as his casket passed through towns and cities from Islamabad to his native village in the restive Waziristan region bordering Afghanistan about 250 miles away.
The procession was not covered by Pakistan’s mainstream media.
A member of the Pashtuns’ rights movement — Pashtun Tahafuz Movement, or PTM — Wazir (his name in documents was Hazrat Naeem) advocated for the rights of his people on digital platforms, using prose and poetry to convey his messages in short reels and TikTok videos and on social media platform X.
He was attacked in Islamabad on July 7 and succumbed to head injuries after four days. Police officials told VOA they have not found the men involved in the attack. PTM says it will investigate why he was killed.
Wazir’s activism on digital platforms incurred Pakistan’s anger when he was working as a laborer in Bahrain. He was arrested in Bahrain at Pakistan’s request and in 2020 and he was handed over to Pakistani authorities the same year.
“He was doing labor work in Bahrain. He was deported through Interpol and was put in jail. He was then kept in an internment center. He was bitten by dogs and was given electric shocks,” PTM leader Manzoor Pashteen said in his address to mourners gathered for a view of Wazir’s casket in different towns on July 11 and 12.
Pakistani officials have not responded to Pashteen’s charges.
Wazir has a series of reels, Facebook posts and TikTok videos that describe in his own poetry, in Pashto, his ordeal in the prisons.
PTM claims Wazir was picked up again by Pakistani authorities in July 2023, in Peshawar, but government officials did not confirm his whereabouts for about six months. He was later handed over to police and was released in late January 2024.
PTM says he was on the Exit Control List till his death. Anyone on the list is subject to restrictions on their movements outside the country.
Pakistani television networks and media outlets often cover protests and funeral processions, but there was silence in the mainstream media on the killing of Wazir.
Afrasiab Khattak, former head of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, told VOA there is a ban on covering PTM activities in media. An army spokesperson told the media in April 2019 to stop reporting on the group.
"When the media cannot report the news about killings, like Gilaman's, or the dead bodies of Baloch, or missing people, then there will be questions,” said Peshawar-based author and academic Irfan Ashraf.
Social media platforms have filled the vacuum of information about Wazir. The hashtag #GilamanWazir was trending on the social media platform X in Pakistan on Thursday. Pakistan has banned X in the country, but more than 32,000 tweets mentioned Wazir in one day. Among others, former Afghan Presidents Hamid Karzai and Ashraf Ghani offered condolences on Wazir’s killing in their tweets.
Government leaders in Islamabad have made no comment on the issue.
PTM staged huge pro-peace rallies after Islamabad announced last month it was launching a new military operation against terrorism. Wazir and Pashteen questioned the dividends of Pakistan’s dozen-plus previous military operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Khattak said there is a trust deficit between the state and the people.
“The government is like a thin layer of onion on the face of [the] military. The army makes the decisions, and people don’t trust the generals,” he said.
Tens of thousands of people attended Wazir’s funeral in North Waziristan on Friday. They chanted against the Pakistan army, and some waved the three-color Afghan national flag, a message to Islamabad that they don’t accept Taliban in Kabul.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jul 6, 2024
- Event Description
On July 6, the Uttar Pradesh Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against journalist Zakir Ali Tyagi and four others for alleging on social media that a Muslim man had been lynched by a mob in the state’s Shamli district. As per multiple media reports, the four other that have been booked include Wasim Akram Tyagi, Asif Rana, Saif Allahbadi and Ahmad Raza Khan. It is essential to note that both Zakir Ali Tyagi and Wasim Akram Tyagi are journalists.
The above-named five persons have been booked for promoting enmity between different groups under section 196 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, and making statements conducive to public mischief under section 353 of the BNS. This comes after a social media post had been put out by Zakir Ali Tyagi on July 5, claiming that a man Firoz, or Kala Qureshi, had died in a mob lynching incident in the Jalalabad town of Shamli district. He also named the persons who had allegedly beaten-up Qureshi. Qureshi was a scrap worker with no criminal record, and was beaten to death over allegations of theft in the Jalalabad town of Shamli district. After his family protested, an FIR against three persons – Pankaj, Pinky and Rajendra – was lodged.
In the said social media post. Zakir Ali Tyagi had alleged that deceased Firoz was “killed by members of another community” on the suspicion of breaking into their house. The post had also been accompanied by a picture the deceased as well as the complaint that was filed by Qureshi’s family, who claimed that Qureshi had been beaten up by a group of men that had caused his death. As provided by Qureshi’s family, he had gone to the Aryanagar area for some work where he was beaten up by a group of three men – Pinky, Pankaj and Rajendra, all residents of Ganga Arya Nagar – around 8 pm. It was after reaching Qureshi being rescused by some men and reaching his house that Qureshi took his last breath around 11 pm, as stated by the police. It is essential to note that an FIR over the said incident had been registered under BNS Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) on July 5 based on the complaint filed by the family.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Bangladesh
- Initial Date
- Jul 4, 2024
- Event Description
Thousands of students in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country on Thursday continued their street protests by blocking the capital’s Shahbagh intersection and major highways including Dhaka-Aricha, Dhaka-Chattogram, Chattogram–Khagrachari, Dhaka-Barishal and Dhaka-Rajshahi, demanding cancellation of the High Court order for restoring a 30 per cent quota for freedom fighters’ children and grandchildren in government jobs.
Dhaka University students, meanwhile, alleged that ruling Awami League-backed student organisation Bangladesh Chhatra League leaders and activists barred students at different halls of residence from joining the protests.
The day’s protests intensified following the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the morning refused to stay the High Court verdict that asked the government on June 5 to restore the 30 per cent quota for the children and grandchildren of freedom fighters while recruiting cadre and non-cadre officers in the civil service.
DU students brought out a procession from in front of the university’s central library at about 11:00am and after marching around all halls of residence of the university, Teacher-Student Centre, Raju Memorial Sculpture ended at Shahbagh Intersection at about 12 noon.
Then the students blocked the intersection from 12 noon to 6:10pm for the third consecutive day defying rain.
The six-hour long blockade at the capital’s major intersection caused severe traffic congestion in and around Banglamotor, Karwan Bazar, Kataban, Elephant Road, Hatirpool, Nilkhet, Segun Bagicha and Press Club areas and people and vehicles, including ambulances carrying dying patients, suffered immensely,.
Nahid Islam, coordinator of the Students Movement against Discrimination, an anti-quota movement platform, announced a fresh three-day programme till Sunday, including the online and in-person programme on Friday.
‘We urge all students to bring out protest processions in all universities and colleges at 3:00pm across the country,’ Nahid said, urging all students to boycott all classes and exams on Sunday.
The protesting students’ four-point demand include cancelling the High Court order that restored the quota system, upholding the 2018 government circular, ensuring merit-based recruitment in the public service, giving appointment to qualified candidates from the merit list if any eligible candidates are not found in quotas for marginalised communities.
A large number of Dhaka University students tried to join the protests and they allegedly faced intimidation by the BCL leaders and activists.
At Surja Sen Hall, BCL leaders and activists closed the hall gate and stood there and the situation became tense when protesting students brought out processions to join the protests.
The agitating students opened the gate and came out of the hall to join the movement chanting slogans against the BCL activists terming them as ‘fake’.
Alongside Surja Sen Hall, the BCL leaders also took position at Bijoy Ekattor Hall’s gate to obstruct the agitating students.
The BCL reportedly created obstruction in several other halls, including Kabi Jasim Uddin Hall, AF Rahman Hall and Shahid Sergeant Zahurul Huq Hall.
Denying the allegations, BCL DU unit general secretary Tanbir Hasan Shaikat termed those as baseless and fabricated.
He said that the BCL did not obstruct anyone from joining the quota reform movement.
Several hundred students of Jahangirnagar University blocked the Dhaka-Aricha highway for about one hour for a fourth straight day on Thursday as the Appellate Division refused to issue a stay order on the HC verdict, New Age correspondent in JU reported.
About three kilometers of tailbacks were created on both lanes of the country’s one of the busiest highways due to the blockade from 12:15pm to 1:00pm on the day.
In Cumilla, a five-kilometre long tailback was created on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway as the students of Cumilla University put up barricades on the highway and many vehicles were seen stuck till 4:00pm on both sides of the highway.
In Barishal, vehicular movement on the Dhaka-Barishal highway remained suspended since this noon as Barishal University students put up barricades, United News of Bangladesh in Barishal reported.
Braving heavy rain in Rajshahi, several thousands of Rajshahi University students staged demonstrations and blocked the Rajshahi-Dhaka highway in front of the university main entrance gate for one hour and a half to press home their demands.
At around 10:40am, they took position on the Dhaka-Rajshahi highway in front of the university main entrance and blocked the highway till 12:10pm, said witnesses.
Students of Chittagong University blocked Chattogram–Khagrachari highway while Shahjalal University of Science and Technology held rallies and sit-ins in front of the main entrance of the university.
On October 4, 2018, the government issued a circular abolishing all the 56 per cent quotas in the public service in the wake of street protests by the public university students and jobseekers demanding reforms to the quota system introduced in 1972.
Until the abolition, about 56 per cent of government jobs were reserved for candidates from various quotas. Of them, 30 per cent were for freedom fighters’ children and grandchildren, 10 per cent for women, 10 per cent for people of underdeveloped districts, 5 per cent for ethnic communities and 1 per cent for physically challenged people.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Jul 4, 2024
- Event Description
On 4 July 2024, the Pervomaiskii District Court of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan ruled to place human rights defender and whistleblower Zhoomart Karabaev in Pre-trial Detention center no. 1. The accusations against him are based on his social media posts, which authorities have argued are an “incitement of mass public discord”, a criminal offense stipulated by the Part 3 of Article 278 of the Criminal Code of Kyrgyzstan. The human rights defender was sentenced to remain in detention until August 19, 2024. Zhoomart Karabaev is a human rights defender, an academic, and a whistleblower from Kyrgyzstan. In 2024, he systemically blew the whistle on how the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan signed expert reviews, which then commonly became the only grounds to sentence state critics in Kyrgyzstan, pre-drafted by the State Committee for National Security. In May 2024, Zhoomart Karabaev provided a witness testimony during the trial of writer Olzhobai Shakir on the nature of the evidentiary support presented by the state authorities. He has also written on social media in regards to these practices, calling for an end to the unjust persecution of state critics. On 2 July 2024, the State Committee for National Security Officers in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, arrested human rights defender Zhoomart Karabaev, brought him in for questioning, and detained him for 48 hours. On 4 July 2024, the Pervomaiskii District Court of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, ruled to place the human rights defender in pre-trial detention in Pre-Trial Detention Center no.1. The accusations against him are based on his social media posts, where he discussed the current wave of persecution against civil society actors, as well as the authorities' failure to acknowledge corruption in the National Academy of Science. The authorities have argued that the human rights defender's posts are an “incitement of mass public discord,” a criminal offense stipulated by Part 3 of Article 278 of the Criminal Code of Kyrgyzstan. Zhoomart Karabaev’s lawyers argue that this persecution is in retaliation for him blowing the whistle on the manner in which the State pressured him and other academics to produce many supposed “expert opinions” for high-level criminal cases against human rights defenders, journalists, and others. These would then support the state’s position in sentencing vocal critics of the state. Such expert opinions are often used as the only incriminating evidence in criminal cases against persons exercising their freedom of expression, including recent cases such as the Kloop media shutdown and trial against women human rights defenders from the Committee to Protect Kempir-Abad. After Zhoomart Karabaev blew the whistle in the Spring of 2024, he was fired from his post as an expert at the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan after refusing to rubberstamp precooked expert opinions prepared by the State Committee for National Security. The leadership of the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan also threatened the human rights defender with retaliation, accusing him of treason.Front Line Defenders condemns the pre-trial detention of human rights defender and whistleblower Zhoomart Karabaev as it believes it constitutes a form of retaliation for his legitimate and peaceful human rights work of exposing state corruption. The organization is gravely concerned with the wave of repressions faced by human rights defenders and journalists in Kyrgyzstan. Front Line believes that targeting human rights defenders has a harmful effect on the peaceful and legitimate work of human rights defenders in Kyrgyzstan.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Academic, Whistleblower
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jul 2, 2024
- Event Description
The five Mother Nature activists arrested yesterday after being sentenced to 6-8 years in prison have been sent to five different prisons, some hundreds of kilometres from their residences and families. Splitting up activists to ensure they are detained far from each other and their families is a cruel and unusual punishment that has no precedent in Cambodia.
Thun Ratha was sent to Correctional Center 3 in Tbong Khmum province; Ly Chandaravuth to Kandal prison; Phuon Keoraksmey to Pursat provincial prison; Yim Leanghy to Kampong Speu prison; and Long Kunthea to Preah Vihear prison.
Sending people to prisons far away from their families and lawyers has been recognised as an infringement of people’s human rights by the United Nations. It is also a clear violation of the “Nelson Mandela Rules” for the humane treatment of prisoners, which calls for people in prison to be close to their homes.
The decision will make it more difficult for families and friends to visit these activists. It will undermine access to quality medical care. Access to timely legal consultation will be effectively impossible. There is no justification for this action, which will severely harm the mental and physical wellbeing of the activists and their families.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, NGO staff, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: ten EHRDs sentenced to prison (Update)
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jul 2, 2024
- Event Description
Ten Mother Nature environmental activists were convicted and sentenced to prison terms of between 6 and 8 years by a Phnom Penh court this morning, while four of the youth activists who were present outside the court were violently arrested by security personnel.
The panel of judges delivered the verdict at the Phnom Penh Capital Court Tuesday morning, concluding the trial that hinged on two criminal charges - plotting and insulting the king — which were related to Mother Nature activists’ peaceful environmental activism.
The court issued arrest warrants for all 10 individuals. At 10:40 am, four of the five activists who have been present at the series of trial hearings were surrounded by at least 50 police officers and security personnel while sitting peacefully outside the Phnom Penh court. The police and plainclothes personnel violently dragged them into waiting cars, as fellow activists shouted for their release. At least two of the Mother Nature activists were dragged by their necks.
The location of the fifth Mother Nature activist who was not present outside the court this morning, Yim Leanghy, is not known. Another activist, Eng Sokha, was also detained by police while gathering near the Mother Nature activists during their arrest, but was released after several hours in police custody.
Four environmental activists — Thun Ratha, 32; Long Kunthea, 26; Phuon Keoraksmey, 23; and Ly Chandaravuth, 24 — spent the hours prior to their arrest leading a peaceful march in a funeral-style procession from the Chrouy Changvar roundabout to the court. The activists were dressed in white funerary clothing and joined by around 50 other activists and supporters. Once they reached the court, the four activists chose not to attend the verdict hearing, and instead met with supporters and family members and expressed their desire to see a more just society that protects and defends natural resources for all Cambodians.
Mother Nature activists have for years faced harassment, threats and criminal charges for their peaceful environmental activism, which has included advocating for the halting of sand mining in Koh Kong province, the protection of the Koh Kong Krao island, and preventing the flow of effluents and sewage into water bodies in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville.
- Impact of Event
- 10
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, NGO staff, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 29, 2024
- Event Description
The Ministry of Interior has ordered Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights (CENTRAL) to disclose its bank account details within 30 days of the date of the letter, failing which they could face non-compliance and legal action in accordance with Article 30 of the Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations.
“In case CENTRAL failed to fulfill its obligations, it is subject to legal actions in accordance with the law and other existing laws,” the statement read.
The notification by the ministry stated that it received complaints and statements from various unions, federations and associations in relation to CENTRAL’s report titled Barriers to Representation: Freedom of Association in Cambodia, which was criticized for being “biased and unfair”. They also mentioned that a “minority assessment of the overall situation does not reflect the reality of trade union freedom in Cambodia”. In addition, the report allegedly “dishonored the nation”, and “affected job stability” and the common interests of workers in Cambodia.
The ministry reminded CENTRAL that in accordance with Article 30 of the Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations, CENTRAL must abide by its own statutes stored at the ministry.
Quoting the letter, Interior Ministry spokesperson Touch Sokhak told CamboJA News that Article 10 of the law states that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are duty-bound to provide bank details to the ministry.
“So, what the ministry has [instructed] is based on the law. It is not against the law. However, CENTRAL’s annual report to the ministry is a different matter,” said Sokhak.
He said the ministry did not arrange a team to observe the NGO, but was only following the law on non-governmental organizations.
Moeun Tola, executive director of the CENTRAL, confirmed receiving the letter from the ministry and its 30-day deadline for bank information to be disclosed.
He said CENTRAL submitted its reports to the ministry every year, however they currently sought for the bank information. The NGO would “send it again” as nothing has changed regarding the account information.
“The strange thing is why the ministry wants it again [bank details]. For CENTRAL, we will send the report or bank information to the ministry again, because in the letter it says that if we do not send the information within 30 days, we will face the law,” Tola said.
Normally, NGOs send their reports to the ministry at the end of February every year. The reports include bank statements. Even “when they want to change bank accounts”, they need to inform the ministry, Am Sam Ath, operation director of Licadho, said.
Last week, 44 local organizations, including Licadho, published a joint statement “disagreeing” with the calls made by the public for a ministerial investigation into the finances and operation of CENTRAL.
“So, when we talk about bank accounts, each NGO complies [with the rules of the ministry]. Regarding bank information, CENTRAL did not have anything new or changed [anything] because they had already sent it. All organizations have auditors to ensure transparency,” he added.
He also mentioned that if other unions disagreed with CENTRAL’s report, they should conduct a new research or case study to show that the report did not represent the situation in Cambodia.
“The most important thing is that all sides want to highlight workers’ rights and freedom of unions. So, they should find a middle ground to talk and discuss rather than sue each other, as it is not looking good [now],” said Sam Ath.
About 10 members of the Confederation Union of Cambodia Bright Workers gathered last week to file a petition with the US Embassy in Cambodia, calling on the country director of USAID to consider providing funds to CENTRAL. They also asked USAID to advise CENTRAL to act transparently.
At the same time, Cambodia Worker’s Right Protection Union Confederation (CWPUC) filed a complaint against CENTRAL program manager Khun Tharo in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on June 27.
According to a complaint sent by CWPUC to a prosecutor at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday, Tharo is alleged to have uttered the words “use fake unions to attack independent unions and use fake youths or civil societies to attack youths and independent civil society”.
CWPUC requested the prosecutor to review and decide on the legal action while demanding that Tharo pay a compensation of 100 million riel ($25,000) to CWPUC, which will be donated to Kantha Bopha Hospital.
Confederation Union of Cambodia Bright Workers general secretary Sea Kunthea declined to comment when CamboJA News contacted via phone and Telegram.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to access to funding, Right to work
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jun 28, 2024
- Event Description
Myanmar’s military regime on Friday sentenced Development Media Group (DMG) reporter Ko Htet Aung, who was arrested while covering an alms donation ceremony on October 29, 2023, and night watchman Ko Soe Win Aung, detained during a raid on DMG’s office the same day, to five years in prison with hard labour.
Police Captain Bo Bo Kyaw of the No. 1 Police Station in Sittwe brought prosecution against the pair under Section 52(a) of the Counter-Terrorism Law, with the Sittwe Court delivering the verdict on Friday.
Junta personnel coerced reporter Ko Htet Aung into taking them to the DMG newsroom in Sittwe, before raiding the office and arresting watchman Ko Soe Win Aung. They confiscated newsroom equipment including cameras, computers and video editing equipment, documents, cash to pay DMG employees’ salaries and office equipment and materials, and also sealed off the building.
While the two men were being detained at the No. 1 Police Station, family members were denied a visit. The pair were sent to a junta interrogation centre at least two times. They were then remanded into custody under Section 65 of the Telecommunications Law and sent to Sittwe Prison. After the two completed their remand, the regime remanded them again in custody for one week on a fabricated charge of stealing a motorbike.
The regime changed the charge to Section 52(a) of the Counter-Terrorism Law on December 1, 2023, over a DMG news story headlined “Calls for justice on sixth anniversary of Muslim genocide in Arakan State”, published on August 25, 2023.
Despite Police Captain Bo Bo Kyaw, the plaintiff in the case, failing to attend court hearings multiple times, the Sittwe Township Court sentenced Ko Htet Aung and Ko Soe Win Aung to five years in prison with hard labour on June 28.
Bo Bo Kyaw also filed a lawsuit against 18 other DMG reporters, editors and office staff employees under Section 52(a) of the Counter-Terrorism Law. Currently, the 18 DMG employees are considered fugitives.
The prosecutions are just the latest to target DMG, which has faced similar court actions dating back to Myanmar’s pre-coup period.
DMG chief editor U Aung Marm Oo has been in hiding for more than five years, after the Myanmar Police Force’s Special Branch opened a case against him under Section 17(2) of the Unlawful Associations Act on May 1, 2019. More than a year and a half later, reporter Aung Kyaw Min was charged by the Road and Bridge Construction Special Group 4 at the instruction of the former, semi-civilian Arakan State government on December 14, 2020, under Section 66(d) of Telecommunications Law for his report “Maungdaw 3 rd Mile Bridge needs urgent repairs”, published on December 11, 2020.
Major Phone Myint Kyaw of the Myanmar military opened a case against female reporter Hnin Nwe and Deputy Editor-in-Charge Nay Win San under Section 66(d) over her report headlined “Tatmadaw personnel accused of looting paddy in Kyauktaw Twsp village”, published on January 10, 2021. The military also filed a defamation case at the township court under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code over the report. In early September 2022, the regime filed cases against Editor-in Charge Moe Zaw Myint under both Section 66(d) and Section 505(a) of the Penal code for alleged online defamation and incitement.
The military regime has shut down independent news outlets, arrested journalists, wielded the law arbitrarily, and interfered with journalists’ work and the public’s right to information in various ways, and continues to block internet access and phone lines, contributing to an environment of fear and keeping the public in the dark.
The military regime has meanwhile been committing mass killings and arrests of innocent civilians amid the ongoing armed conflict, and continues to suppress the media to cover up their actions.
The military regime’s sentence of five years’ imprisonment for the two DMG employees not only suppresses the media, but also infringes on freedom of the press, the right of journalists to be safe and secure, and the right of the people to know the truth.
DMG strongly condemns the regime’s unjust imprisonment of Ko Htet Aung and Ko Soe Win Aung, and urges international organisations and foreign governments to pressure the junta to release all journalists arrested under various dubious charges in prisons across the country, including the DMG staff facing charges behind bars or in absentia.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Myanmar: media workers charged under repressive law
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 27, 2024
- Event Description
The Dak Lak People’s Court on Thursday sentenced six farm workers to between five and seven years in prison on charges of “destroying assets,” amid a longstanding dispute between an indigenous Ede village and a coffee company.
According to a report from state-owned media outlet, Cong Ly, Y Luh Nie and Y Coh Nie were each sentenced to seven years in prison; Y Luong Hlong, Y Nguot Hdok, and Y Hoan Bya, to six years in prison; and Y Rosi Nie to five years.
The six men were found guilty of cutting down and destroying coffee trees belonging to a local company, causing a loss of over VND2.7 billion (around US$108,000), according to the indictment, which also alleged the group incited and aided neighbors to create petitions to claim their land back.
Residents of Ea Pok town have long struggled with Ea Pok coffee, which has for decades held the rights to cultivate land residents say was once theirs.
According to the indictment summarized by Cong Ly, in 1987, the state-owned Ea Pok Coffee Company invested in planting coffee in Cu Mgar district. Local residents were contracted to look after the coffee trees and were allowed to keep a small part of the harvest as payment. The arrangement left many in debt, villagers reported to Radio Free Asia in 2022.
In 2018, the Ea Pok Coffee company was privatized, and the government’s share was reduced to 32 percent. A year later, villagers petitioned the government to restore their farming rights, without success.
After going private, the company announced it would replace some of the coffee trees with durian, avocado, and jackfruit. Though residents opposed the plan, the company started destroying coffee trees in 2022 to clear the way for the new crops leading to mass protests in May 2022.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 27, 2024
- Event Description
The Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights (CENTRAL) clarified that its report, which highlighted restrictions on freedom of association, was aimed at improving workers’ conditions and ensuring respect for the rights of trade unions and leaders.
The Ministry of Interior is currently investigating the allegations by unions and federations against the organization.
At the same time, Cambodia Worker’s Right Protection Union Confederation (CWPUC) has filed a complaint against CENTRAL program manager Khun Tharo in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday.
Amid this, dozens of unions and federations have continued protesting against CENTRAL, saying that they “still cannot accept” the clarification.
On Wednesday, CENTRAL issued a clarification, stating that their report sought to highlight Better Factories Cambodia’s (BFC) assessment that freedom of association can create a safer and more respectful environment for Cambodian trade unions to operate.
“Our intention was to raise awareness for changes in compliance monitoring that would lead to more accurate, usable data for all workers in negotiations to improve their working conditions and exercise their rights,” the statement read.
“Many of the workers and unions that CENTRAL partnered with experienced restrictions in their ability to associate freely,” it said.
The report attempted to detail the experiences of union leaders and workers who participated in the study and show that what happened on the ground “was not always captured” in BFC’s public compliance data, due to various methodological, institutional, and logistical reasons.
“We fully acknowledge that our sample is not necessarily representative of Cambodia’s entire garment sector,” it said. “We would like to reiterate that we feel it is clear that the report was never intended as an attack on any party or institution nor was it intended to damage Cambodia’s reputation.”
CENTRAL mentioned that the report had a “very narrow scope with a small sample size” that was meant to be viewed as “illustrative”, “not necessarily representative of all Cambodian garment workers”.
In addition, a survey was conducted with one representative from 14 of the 24 participating unions from December last year. By June this year, six unions had dissolved because of factory closures, while the remaining four either “did not have compliance reports available or were not registered with BFC”.
Meanwhile, CWPUC has accused CENTRAL’s Tharo of public defamation and incitement to discrimination following an interview with RFA on June 15.
According to a complaint sent by CWPUC to a prosecutor at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday, Tharo is alleged to have uttered the words “use fake unions to attack independent unions and use fake youths or civil societies to attack youths and independent civil society”.
The complaint by CWPUC also alleged that Tharo’s statement was a “serious accusation without clear legal basis and infringed on the rights, freedoms and dignity of professional organizations (unions), defaming (them) as well as CWPUC”.
The CWPUC requested the prosecutor to review and decide on the legal action while demanding that Tharo pay a compensation of 100 million riel ($25,000) to CWPUC, which will be donated to Kantha Bopha Hospital.
CENTRAL’s Khun Tharo could not be reached for comment.
Phnom Penh Municipal court deputy prosecutor Plang Sophal did not reply to questions regarding the lawsuit via Telegram.
Separately, Confederation Union of Cambodia Bright Workers’ general secretary Sea Kunthea said CENTRAL acknowledged that its report was incomplete or not comprehensive and did not reflect the reality in Cambodia.
“I don’t accept [the statement] unless they edit the report that was released on June 4, 2024 to reflect the actual situation,” said Kunthea. By actual situation, she meant that there was no restriction on the freedom of association. Until CENTRAL changes the report, she will continue to protest, she vowed.
Kunthea said CENTRAL should not have released the report which talked about the restriction of freedom of association, particularly when Cambodia has approximately 6,000 unions present in about 1,000 factories. “Compare this to other countries, are there any which have the freedom [to set up] unions like our country?”
Echoing Khunthea, Kim Chan Samnang, president of the Cambodian Workers’ Rights Union, demanded that CENTRAL change its report as it does not represent the overall situation of unions and federations in the country.
“The statement of clarification is just an excuse because [what they meant in the] statement is opposite to their report,” he said, adding that the report has already been released publicly.
Samnang demanded that the Ministry of Interior review CENTRAL’s activity and their foreign funding.
International organizations, such as CIVICUS and garment industry labor alliance Clean Clothes Campaign, said pro-government unions have started a “coordinated effort” to convince the Interior Ministry to investigate CENTRAL’s operation and finance. It will further restrict civil society organizations’ space to exercise their rights to freedom of speech, which is essential for exercising the rights to freedom of association.
“It is extremely worrying that these groups are seeking to undermine and seek greater government control of the organization. These actions send a chilling message to human rights groups undertaking their work in the country,” the statement by CIVICUS read.
Forty-four local organizations, including rights group Licadho, published a joint statement “disagreeing” with the calls made by the public for a ministerial investigation into the finances and operation of CENTRAL.
The organizations said “using administrative measures to penalize the labor rights group’s work is a violation of freedom of expression”.
On Monday, it was reported that the Interior Ministry was planning to launch an investigation into CENTRAL’s operation and use of foreign funds. A petition was also submitted to the US Agency for International Development (USAID) by the unions and federations to reconsider its funding of CENTRAL.
On the same day, the Textile, Apparel, Footwear and Travel Goods Association in Cambodia (TAFTAC) issued a controversial statement, alleging that Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union (CCAWDU) and Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions (CATU) also refuted the CENTRAL report.
However, CATU rejected the claim made by TAFTAC, which stated that the freedom of association in Cambodia was “better”, and it was “certainly so in the garment, footwear and travel goods sectors”.
Interior Ministry spokesperson Khieu Sopheak confirmed that an investigation committee is working on this issue.
“They are working, and the person who brings the information to them [CENTRAL] is [doing something] illegal,” he said. “Let the committee do it [inform CENTRAL],” Sopheak said, declining to comment further.
Neither USAID in Cambodia nor BFC responded to CamboJA News via email.
The International Labor Organization said it will respond by Friday.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Malaysia
- Initial Date
- Jun 27, 2024
- Event Description
An activist who highlighted the plight of the indigenous Bajau Lau community was arrested by Sabah police today, a move that was criticised by a local chapter of an international rights group.
Mukmin Nantang, the founder of Borneo Komrad, was released on police bail later, Amnesty International Malaysia said.
It is understood that Mukmin is being investigated for sedition.
Amnesty International Malaysia slammed the arrest, describing it as an attempt to intimidate and silence activists. It said the use of the Sedition Act was a blatant violation of freedom of expression.
“The government has an obligation to protect human rights defenders, not arrest and attempt to intimidate (them).
"The repressive Sedition Act has no place in Malaysia and goes against Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration’s own commitments to repeal draconian laws curtailing freedom of speech, its executive director, Katrina Jorene Maliamauv, said in a statement.
Maliamauv urged the authorities to drop the investigation against Mukmin and called on the Sabah government to end the crackdown on human rights activists and the Bajau Laut people.
On June 25, Sabah police said it would be questioning Mukmin in connection with videos depicting the demolition of Bajau Laut homes.
The eviction of the Bajau Laut community in Semporna, Sabah, earlier this month saw their stilt homes torn down in an operation that apparently targeted those living on seven islands in the region, including Pulau Bohey Dulang, Pulau Maiga, Pulau Bodgaya, Pulau Sebangkat and Pulau Sibuan.
Mukmin was reported as saying that men had arrived at the Bajau Laut community’s homes on June 4, and demolished and burnt their homes to drive them out.
Borneo Komrad also shared several videos of the alleged evictions on X, one of which showed several men pushing a dilapidated house until it collapsed.
However, Sabah tourism, culture and environment minister Christina Liew said the operation was carried out because of safety concerns following a shooting incident in Teluk Darvel and cross-border criminal activities in the area.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jun 27, 2024
- Event Description
RSF is urging Indonesian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into a recent house fire that claimed the lives of a journalist and his family, amid serious suspicions that the disaster may be a criminal act in retribution for his investigations into an illegal gambling network.
A coalition of Indonesian press freedom organisations released a report on 2 July 2024 suggesting that the death of Sempurna Pasaribu, a journalist for Tribrata TV who perished in a house fire, was a criminal act. According to a witness, five unidentified individuals were seen approaching the journalist's home, located in the city of Kabanjahe, in western Indonesia, thirty minutes before the blaze on the night of 27 June. Sempurna's wife, son, and grandson also perished in the fire.
In the days leading up to the tragedy, the 47-year-old journalist received threats from officials reacting to his articles on the TV channel’s website about an illegal gambling den owned by a local army officer, as well as his coverage of local campaigns that opposed drug use, illegal gambling, and prostitution. Army and police officers also contacted the editor-in-chief of Tribrata TV, urging the removal of the articles, but their requests were left unanswered.
"The initial findings of the investigation suggest that Sempurna Pasaribu and his family may have been victims of an assassination due to the journalist’s investigations on illegal gambling activities. We urge the Indonesian authorities to conduct a thorough judicial investigation to determine the causes and ensure that those responsible are brought to justice.
Cédric Alviani Director of RSF’s Asia-Pacific Bureau In Indonesia, journalists investigating abuses committed by local authorities often face intimidation and even imprisonment. In November 2021, journalist Muhammad Asrul was abusively sentenced to three months in prison for publishing a report on the embezzlement of public funds by a local administration.
Indonesia ranked 111th out of 180 in the 2024 RSF World Press Freedom Index, guarantees freedom of the press in principle in its legislation.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Death, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Family of HRD, Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 26, 2024
- Event Description
Twelve Koh Kong land activists were convicted by a provincial court on incitement charges for attempting to travel to Phnom Penh in 2023 to petition authorities for a resolution to their long-standing land dispute.
The Koh Kong Provincial Court found all 12 defendants guilty of incitement on Wednesday and imposed a suspended sentence of six months in prison. The defendants are Det Huor, Heng Chey, Inn Thou, Lang Cheav, Phav Nheung, Seng Lin, Sok Chey, Soung Theng, Tith Tang, Yi Kunthea, Yoeut Khmao, and Rek Soeung.
In July 2023, the group of activists from three communities were stopped at Srae Ambel district in Koh Kong and prevented from reaching Phnom Penh to deliver a petition to Justice Minister Koeut Rith. A majority of the defendants — including Nheung, Lin, Heng Chey and Sok Chey — have also faced multiple charges in separate cases.
The land activists are embroiled in disputes with companies linked to tycoons Ly Yong Phat and Heng Huy that have been ongoing for more than a decade. The companies were granted concessions for sugar plantations that overlapped with community members’ land. The activists have repeatedly demanded for the government to find solutions to the disputes, but continue to be harassed by authorities.
- Impact of Event
- 12
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: ten land rights defenders convicted
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Jun 26, 2024
- Event Description
The Teachers-Principals Trade Union Alliance has declared a nationwide strike today (27) in response to the water cannon and tear gas attacks on teachers and principals during their protest in Colombo on Wednesday (26).
The union members are demanding a resolution to the salary disparity issue.
In contrast, the Ministry of Education has issued an announcement stating that all government schools will operate as usual today.
On Wednesday (26) afternoon, teachers and principals held a protest march near the Fort railway station. Sri Lanka Police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Over 30 professional associations, representing teachers, principals, teacher advisors, and piriven staff, participated in the demonstration.
As a result of this ongoing trade union action, academic activities in schools have been significantly disrupted.
Meanwhile, the second phase of evaluating answer scripts of the G. C. E. Ordinary Level examination (2023) was scheduled to begin today.
However, the Department of Examinations announced that the evaluation work will be postponed due to unavoidable reasons.
The department informed all inspectors and evaluation center staff that the process will now commence tomorrow.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 26, 2024
- Event Description
In Central Luzon, tarpaulins addressed to Karapatan-Central Luzon coordinator Pia Montalban were hung in at least three provinces — Pampanga, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija — accusing her and KARAPATAN of being the recruiters of ten alleged members of the New People’s Army (NPA) slain in a gunbattle in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija on June 26. The latter’s families had requested Montalban’s assistance in retrieving the bodies of their loved ones from a funeral parlor.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- NGO, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jun 25, 2024
- Event Description
Unidentified gunmen shot and killed a prominent human rights defender in Pattani province in southern Thailand on June 25, 2024, Human Rights Watch said today. Thai authorities should urgently conduct a transparent and impartial investigation into the killing of Roning Dolah, 45, and bring those responsible to justice.
On June 25 at about 8:45 p.m., two assailants on a motorcycle opened fire at Roning with assault rifles in front of his family in Pattani’s Yarang district, instantly killing him, his wife said. Local police said seven 7.62mm and one 5.56mm bullet casings were found at the scene.
“The brutal killing of a prominent human rights defender underscores that anyone who speaks out for justice in Thailand’s deep south is at risk,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Thai authorities should urgently and transparently investigate this killing and bring all those responsible for Roning Dolah’s death to justice.”
On June 26, the Thai government’s Internal Security Operations Command Region 4 – responsible for counterinsurgency operations in the deep south – issued a statement expressing condolences to Roning’s family and asked for witnesses with information to come forward, but did not announce a full criminal investigation into his killing.
Roning was widely known in Thailand’s southern border provinces for assisting ethnic Malay Muslim victims of arbitrary arrest and torture by Thai security forces in counterinsurgency operations in Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat provinces. He had previously been arrested and tortured in military custody, according to the Cross Cultural Foundation. Thai human rights groups used his accounts and information he gathered from other torture victims in their campaigns to demand accountability for military abuses and advocate for Thailand’s Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearances, which took effect in February 2023.
But during 20 years of armed insurgency in Thailand’s southern border provinces, not a single soldier or other security personnel member has been prosecuted for unlawfully detaining, torturing, or extrajudicially killing suspected insurgents.
Thailand has an obligation under international human rights law to ensure that all human rights defenders and organizations can carry out their work in a safe and enabling environment, Human Rights Watch said.
The killing of Roning is a crucial test of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s pledge to promote and protect human rights in his speeches to the Thai parliament on September 11, 2023, and to the United Nations General Assembly on September 22. Despite Thailand’s adoption of a much-advertised national human rights agenda and its efforts to be elected to a seat on the UN Human Rights Council for the 2025-2027 term, Thai authorities have done little to address threats and violence, as well as the use of strategic lawsuits by government agencies and non-state actors to silence those reporting human rights violations.
“The Srettha government should promptly act to reverse the deepening climate of fear in Thailand’s deep south by showing that those responsible for killing Roning will be held to account,” Pearson said. “Thai authorities should take concrete measures to protect the rights of ethnic Malay Muslims to speak out about state-sponsored abuses and demand justice.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Jun 25, 2024
- Event Description
The Kyrgyz prosecutor asked the Sverdlov district court on June 25 to convict activist Askat Jetigen and sentence him to eight years in prison on charges of calling for the seizure of power and mass unrest. In his final statement at the trial, Jetigen, known for his criticism of the Central Asian nation's government, reiterated his innocence. Jetigen was arrested in March, days after his last video, criticizing reforms by the Culture Ministry, was posted online. His trial started in late May. Human rights groups have criticized the Kyrgyz government for using the charge of "calling for mass unrest" as a tool to muzzle dissent.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Artist, Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jun 25, 2024
- Event Description
On June 25, journalist Shivshankar Jha, 48, sustained multiple wounds to his throat after being stabbed by unidentified persons, allegedly organised by illicit alcohol suppliers in the north-eastern state of Bihar. Jha was attacked while returning to his residence in Maripur village, situated near Muzaffarpur in Bihar. Reportedly, he was rushed by local residents to the Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital, where he died as a result of his injuries on June 26.
Jha, who worked for several Hindi media outlets, had complained to the police about severe threats to his life prior to the attack. According to local media reports, the family claimed that the local ‘liqour mafia’ an organised crime outfit distributing illicit alcohol, was responsible for Jha’s murder. Two people have reportedly been arrested in connection to the killing.
In a statement, the Indian Journalists’ Union (IJU) strongly condemned the journalist’s killing, with local politicians expressing condolences and committing to holding those responsible to account. Since prohibiting the sale of alcohol, in 2016 Bihar has seen the rise of illicit alcohol production and distribution.
On May 13, Sudarshan News journalist Ashutosh Srivastava was fatally shot in Uttar Pradesh while travelling home from a market. Like Shivshankar, he had received threats prior to his killing, and had written to police requesting protection.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jun 24, 2024
- Event Description
On May 24, social activist Medha Patkar was convicted by a Delhi court lodged in a criminal defamation case filed against her by VK Saxena, the current Lieutenant Governor of Delhi. The said conviction under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 was delivered by Metropolitan Magistrate Raghav Sharma in a 23-year-old case.
“Medha Patkar has committed an offence punishable under Section 500 of the IPC. She is hereby convicted of the same,” the court said while pronouncing the conviction.
The matter will now be heard for arguments on sentence on May 30. Notably, for a conviction of criminal defamation, the Narmada Bachao Andolan leader may get a jail term of two years or fine or both as the punishment under the relevant law.
Details of the case:
As per multiple media reports, Patkar and Saxena have been locked in a legal battle since 2000 after she filed a suit against him for publishing advertisements against her and the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA).
Saxena was then the chief of Ahmedabad-based NGO National Council for Civil Liberties. Saxena had also filed two cases against her for making derogatory remarks against him on a TV channel and issuing a defamatory statement.
As per LiveLaw’s report, Saxena had filed the present case in 2001 against Patkar for defaming him in a press note dated November 25, 2000, titled “true face of patriot.” In the press note, Patkar had reportedly said Saxena was a coward and not a patriot.
Observations of the Court:
As per a report of India Today, the magistrate court stated that Patkar’s statements against Saxena were “not only defamatory but also crafted to incite negative perceptions”. The Court had further held that Patkar’s actions were deliberate and malicious, aimed at tarnishing Saxena’s good name and have caused substantial harm to his standing and credit.
During the delivery of the conviction, the Magistrate court further held that “It has been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused Medha Patkar published the imputations with the intent and knowledge that they would harm the reputation of the complainant.”
The judge also concluded that Patkar’s decision to label the complainant as a “coward” and “not a patriot” was a direct attack on his personal character and loyalty to the nation. Furthermore, the court noted that Patkar’s accusation that Saxena was “mortgaging the people of Gujarat and their resources to foreign interests was a direct attack on his integrity and public service”.
The court went on to hold that the statements made by Patkar were defamatory as it questioned his patriotism and stated “It has been demonstrated that the defamatory statements made by the accused not only questioned his integrity and patriotism but also falsely associated him with activities contrary to his public stance.”
Referencing to the lack of evidence provided by Patkar to counter the charged levied against her, the court observed that “The accused failed to provide any evidence to counter these claims or to show that she did not intend or foresee the harm these imputations would cause.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 21, 2024
- Event Description
Political prisoner Truong Van Dung, who is serving a six-year prison sentence on allegations of “distributing anti-state propaganda,” received a disciplinary punishment in prison for two months, between June 20 and August 20, for the second time for allegedly “defaming the honor and dignity of others,” according to a notice dated June 21 sent to Dung’s family. Dung, 66, who is being held at Gia Trung Prison in Gia Lai Province, has been shackled and kept in a solitary cell for seven days as a punishment, his wife, Nghiem Thi Hop, said.
The prison’s notice declared that Dung had “insulted the honor and dignity of others as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 1 of the Regulation on Detention.” However, Hop told Radio Free Asia (RFA) that she believed her husband “had done nothing wrong” and that he was disciplined because he protested the wrongdoing of other correctional officers. She added that after the disciplinary order was lifted, Dung would only be allowed one visitation every two months instead of one every month.
Moreover, Hop told RFA that earlier this year, her husband was also held in solitary confinement for a month as a punishment for the same violation of prison regulations; he was not shackled at that time. She added that she sent Dung a gift bag by mail in the middle of this month, but the package was returned on June 24 because the prison refused to send it to him. Truong Van Dung was convicted under Article 117 of the Penal Code, which is frequently used to target human rights defenders and journalists in Vietnam.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 20, 2024
- Event Description
Koet Saray, President of the Khmer Student Intelligent League Association (KSILA), was denied bail by the Phnom Penh Appeal Court this morning and transferred back to Correctional Centre 1 (CC1) prison.
Over a dozen youth activists gathered outside of the court in support of Saray, who has been imprisoned since his arrest in April 2024 on charges of incitement in relation to ongoing land conflicts in Preah Vihear province.
Saray is also charged with “committing a misdemeanour after sentencing for a misdemeanour,” due to previously being convicted of incitement in 2021 over a peaceful gathering calling for the release of then-imprisoned union leader Rong Chhun. This additional charge potentially doubles the sentence of the new incitement charge, meaning he faces up to four years in prison if convicted.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, NGO staff, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: student leader arrested, investigated
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 20, 2024
- Event Description
Union leader Chea Chan was convicted today and sentenced to one year in prison by the Kampong Speu Provincial Court over charges of being an accomplice to theft, which were filed shortly after Chan unanimously won a union vote at Wing Star Shoes factory. Six months of the one-year sentence were suspended.
Chan has been imprisoned since his arrest in February 2024, while the alleged theft had occurred years earlier. Around 40 workers and union members gathered inside and outside the court today to support Chan, a unionist with the Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions (CATU). The union has called the charges judicial abuse to stifle freedom of association, and Chan reported receiving threats warning him against forming a union at the factory prior to the union vote.
Chan is one of at least three union leaders imprisoned in Cambodia. Chhim Sithar, president of the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU), has been imprisoned since November 2022. Morm Rithy, president of the Cambodian Tourism and Service Workers’ Federation, was jailed in May this year prior to an internal union vote.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Jun 19, 2024
- Event Description
A Bishkek court on June 19 ordered anti-war activist Ondurush Toktonasyrov to pay a 100,000-som ($1,140) fine after being convicted on a charge of inciting hatred online. Prosecutors had sought three years in prison for the activist. Toktonasyrov said he will appeal the ruling, calling it politically motivated. The 65-year-old activist is known for publicly raising social and political issues for years. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he condemned Moscow's aggression on social media.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jun 19, 2024
- Event Description
On 19 June 2024, the Tbong Khmum Appeal Court upheld the verdict of the Ratanakiri Provincial Court convicting well-known environmental activist Chhorn Phalla of defamation, insult and incitement to commit a felony under Articles 305, 502, and 495 of the Criminal Code.
The decision of the Appeal Court came after Phalla’s trial on 28 May 2024. He faces one year in prison and a 10 million riel (around US$2,500) fine, pending the exhaustion of the appeals process.
Phalla is an outspoken and long-time activist who has endured significant prosecution in the course of his work protecting natural resources and monitoring deforestation. Before his conviction the Ratanakiri Provincial Court earlier this year in this case, he had been imprisoned between September 2021 and October 2023 for convictions in two other cases – both brought against his for his activism – that were subsequently overturned.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: environmental defender convicted (Update)
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jun 19, 2024
- Event Description
People in Ayeyarwady, Yangon, Mandalay, Sagaing and Bago regions, as well as Kachin State, participated in the nationwide Flower Strike called by pro-democracy groups in Burma to commemorate Aung San Suu Kyi’s 79th birthday on June 19.
In Mandalay, at least 20 people were arrested. In Sagaing Region, four people were arrested. In Ayeyarwady Region another four were arrested. “The military has called for the arrest of flower sellers and buyers, as well as those who posted photos with flowers on social media,” a Mandalay resident told DVB.
The embassies of several countries in Burma released statements condemning the ongoing detention of Aung San Suu Kyi. “[We] continue to call for her and all those arbitrarily detained to be released. The charges against her are clearly politically motivated,” stated the British embassy. Norway, Denmark, Finland and the E.U. shared photos of roses on their social media accounts.
- Impact of Event
- 28
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 19, 2024
- Event Description
Karapatan also documented a case of harassment against a farmer in Negros Occidental. Human Rights Alliance of Negros (HRAN) reported that on June 13, Evelyn Manait, a member of the Ituman-Bukidnon tribe, was harassed in her house in Barangay Amontay, Binalbagan. Eight men in civilian clothes interrogated her on the whereabouts of her husband and brother-in-law. The said men accused them of being members of the New People’s Army.
“Manait answered that her husband had gone to another town to sell mangoes and denied knowing where her brother-in-law was. She later learned that the men were elements of the 62nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army,” Palabay said.
According to the HRAN, Manait now fears for her safety after the incident.
Meanwhile, on June 19 in Batangas, a man who identified himself as a police officer asked barangay officials in Bauan, Batangas for the whereabouts of Tanggol Batangan paralegal Juvie Ann Biding.
Karapatan said that as a human rights worker, Biding has been providing services to political prisoners in their province. She has also been involved in various humanitarian missions in Batangas and other parts of Southern Tagalog.
Biding has reported being under surveillance and harassed multiple times since April this year and has filed a complaint with the Commission on Human Rights, Karapatan added.
“These forms of harassment and threats are committed with impunity by State security forces, as sanctioned by the Marcos administration through its counterinsurgency program. Karapatan calls on human rights advocates and the public to strongly denounce these rights violations which are a prelude to worse forms of violations as military operations continue in rural areas,” Palabay said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- NGO staff, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Suspected state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 18, 2024
- Event Description
On the evening of June 18, unidentified assailants fatally shot Jibran, a reporter for the privately owned Pashto-language broadcaster Khyber News, in the Landi Kotal area of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to news reports and the local press freedom group Pakistan Press Foundation.
Two armed men dragged Jibran, former president of the Landi Kotal Press Club, out of the vehicle and ordered three other individuals traveling with him to get out, stating they were not targets, according to those sources. The gunmen then opened fire on Jibran, killing him on the spot.
“Pakistan authorities must urgently bring those responsible for the killing of journalist Khalil Jibran to justice and take immediate steps to end the wave of violence against reporters in the country,” said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi. “The only way to reassure Pakistani journalists of their safety is for authorities to stop the cycle of impunity that allows these attacks to continue unabated.”
Police did not arrive at the scene until nearly an hour later, Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported, citing information from local residents.
Jiban sustained 19 bullet wounds and an arm fracture, suggesting a physical scuffle had taken place between him and the attackers, Dawn reported, citing doctors at a local hospital. The journalist is survived by his wife and five children.
Qazi Fazlullah, president of the Tribal Union of Journalists and a reporter for broadcaster Geo News, told CPJ that local journalists were advocating for a judicial commission to investigate journalists’ murders amid a severe pattern of impunity.
Saleem Abbas Kulachi – district police officer of Khyber district, which encompasses Landi Kotal – told CPJ that no suspects had been apprehended as the early morning of June 21, but that a few people “have been made part of investigations.”
Jibran had received threats from militants over the past decade in relation to his journalism, Fazlullah said, adding that unidentified individuals attacked Jibran with a hand grenade in 2014 and planted an explosive device that did not detonate under his car in 2017.
Jibran had received a resurgence of threats over the past two years in relation to his reporting for Khyber News, in which he documented militancy with the help of government and army sources, Fazlullah said.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has experienced a dramatic surge in militant attacks since the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, otherwise known as the Pakistani Taliban, exited a ceasefire with the Pakistan government in 2022.
Pakistan information minister Attaullah Tarar did not immediately respond to CPJ’s request for comment.
At least five other journalists have been killed in Pakistan thus far in 2024, including Kamran Dawar, a journalist based in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district. CPJ is investigating the motives behind these attacks.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 18, 2024
- Event Description
Human rights group Karapatan denounced a series of raids and harassment against peasant leaders and rights advocates.
The latest incident happened on June 18 in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan where soldiers ransacked the house of Tanggol Magsasaka Secretary-General and Spokesperson Ronnie Manalo.
Cristina Palabay, secretary-general of Karapatan, said in a statement that these incidents may be a “prelude to a major crackdown against peasant leaders, activists and farmers’ rights advocates.”
According to KMP, soldiers forcibly entered Manalo’s unoccupied house at around 7:00 am on June 18. The group said that the soldiers, reportedly belonging to the 80th Infantry Battalion, illegally searched Manalo’s house and claimed to have found a firearm. Just like in previous raids of activists’ houses and offices, KMP stressed that the evidence was fabricated.
Karapatan added that the soldiers who interrogated Manalo’s relative were not accompanied by police officers or village officials.
On the same day at around 10:30 am, soldiers went to the house of 63-year old Alyansa ng Magbubukid sa Bulacan (AMB) Chairperson, Cecilia Rapiz in barangay Paradise 3, San Jose Del Monte City in Bulacan asking for her whereabouts.
“Local residents reported seeing a company-size group of soldiers along the common boundaries of barangays San Roque, Paradise 3 and Tungkong Mangga. Checkpoints have reportedly been set up in the area, preventing residents of San Roque and Paradise 3 from leaving their villages,” Palabay said. She added that the planting of a firearm in Manalo’s residence “shows that State forces are concocting a trumped-up case of illegal possession of firearms against him.”
The villages of San Roque, Paradise 3 and Tungkong Mangga are known as a major source of produce for the Bagsakan Bungkalan Farmers Market, a farm-to-market project of the KMP that holds bazaars in different parts of Metro Manila to sell lower-priced fruits and vegetables grown by farmers nationwide. Rapiz is known to be among the active producer-sellers for Bagsakan.
According to KMP, farmers have observed an increased presence of soldiers in civilian communities over the weekend. “Almost a hundred combined forces of soldiers from the 80th IBPA, PNP-SAF, and SWAT started conducting operations in at least six sitios in the SJDM villages of Barangay San Roque, Barangay Paradise 3, and Barangay Tungkong Mangga, merely 25 kilometers away from Quezon City proper. The said military operations in the peasant communities of SJDM are causing intense fear and distress among residents and farmers.”
Both Manalo and Rapiz were victims of persistent red-tagging, threat, harassment and intimidation by state forces defending their land rights.
Farmers are defending their rights in San Jose Del Monte as their land is reportedly being grabbed by the Aranetas.
In 2022, KMP said Manalo and Rapiz were frequently visited by the military. Manalo, in particular, was part of a team of farmers and peasant advocates in 2022 who were fired upon and harassed by goons hired by Araneta Properties Inc. in Sitio Ricafort, Tungkong Mangga in SJDM.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 18, 2024
- Event Description
Reports indicate that the Taliban have detained Yama Maqsudi, a civil activist, and taken him to an unknown location.
Yama Maqsudi, who has German citizenship, arrived in Kabul from Germany on Wednesday, May 8, to visit his relatives, and was detained ten days later in district four of the city of Kabul.
The Afghanistan International news network, citing Maqsudi's relatives, reported that the civil activist was arrested by Taliban intelligence agents. So far, the Taliban have not made any statements in this regard, and the reason for Maqsudi's detention remains unknown.
In 2019, Maqsudi received the Federal Cross of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany for his work on “pluralism, mutual acceptance and social justice.” The Federal Cross of Merit is the highest decoration in Germany, awarded since 1951 by the President of Germany to individuals who have provided outstanding service in various areas, including politics, economics, culture, spirituality and volunteerism.
Members of Maqsudi's family have reportedly attempted to contact the Taliban to find out his whereabouts, but the Taliban have refused to provide information.
Maqsudi's relatives have expressed concern because he suffers from diabetes and needs regular medication. They fear that his health will be in serious danger if he does not receive his medication.
According to available information, Yama Maqsudi has worked in recent years in defense and cooperation with refugees in Germany.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jun 18, 2024
- Event Description
Six Tibetan caterpillar fungus harvesters and sellers from eastern Tibet have been detained by Chinese police after attempting to report a buyer who allegedly defrauded them, sources with knowledge of the situation said.
The harvesters from farming or nomadic families in Chamdo city’s Tengchen county, or Dengqen in Chinese, were trying to report a Chinese merchant who allegedly duped 26 Tibetans out of caterpillar fungus worth 2.5 million yuan, or about US$344,000, the sources said.
In English, the substance is called caterpillar fungus, but it is more widely recognized throughout Asia by its Tibetan name yartsa gunbu, which means “summer grass, winter worm.”
Many Tibetans in the county rely on income from selling the fungus to make a living.
Highly valued in traditional medicine and sometimes fetching up to US$50,000 per pound, the fungus is believed to treat various ailments, despite lacking scientific validation.
Police detained the six Tibetans — Dhargey, Drubgha, Ngado, Samdup, Tsering Dhargey and Tsega — on June 18 when they traveled to northern China’s coastal city of Tianjin to lodge a complaint, said the sources, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals by authorities.
Two police officers from Chamdo city and a local officer initially detained the group there before transferring them to Tengchen county, the sources said. Their current whereabouts are unknown.
Scammed
Twenty-six Tibetans in the county who accumulated their own stocks of caterpillar fungus, supplemented by additional purchases, sold their entire supplies to Chinese businessman Lin Jinyuan, who offered 5,000 yuan, or nearly US$700, more per kilogram than other buyers, said a Tibetan from the region.
Upon learning that Lin owned stores and hotels in Beijing and Tianjin, the sellers immediately trusted him and agreed to sell their stocks, he said.
Lin gave them a receipt and promised to pay them the money after a few days, but on June 9, he vanished from Tengchen and could not be found, the source said.
“When the Tibetan sellers went to the address on the receipt in Tianjin to collect their payment for the caterpillar fungus, they realized they had been duped,” the Tibetan told Radio Free Asia. “The receipt was fake and did not belong to him.”
Chinese authorities detained the Tibetans for taking the matter into their own hands rather than following the proper protocol for lodging complaints, and for creating a commotion, a second Tibetan from Tibet told RFA.
“The Tibetan sellers, however, insisted that all they want is to recover the money the Chinese businessman duped them out of,” he said. “They have submitted all the evidence, including a picture of the Chinese businessman and the receipts he gave them.”
Local authorities and police in Tengchen county warned the Tibetans to follow proper procedures or risk imprisonment instead of recovering their money, he said.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jun 15, 2024
- Event Description
Myanmar prison authorities beat about 80 female political prisoners, critically injuring five of them, after prison authorities sparked a protest when they confiscated the women’s belongings, a human rights group told Radio Free Asia on Tuesday.
Many people have been imprisoned in Myanmar for their political beliefs and activity since a 2021 coup ended a decade of tentative democratic reforms and triggered widespread opposition to military rule.
Junta authorities have been accused of torture, extrajudicial killings and other abuses in Myanmar’s cramped and crumbling prisons.
Tension in the Bago region’s Daik-U Prison began when guards seized food and personal belongings of about 40 political prisoners on Saturday, according to the Political Prisoner Network Myanmar.
The women demanded their items back. As the disturbance grew, prison authorities punched and beat women prisoners and fired shots into the air, said a member of the rights group’s steering committee, Thaik Tun Oo.
“The five who were seriously injured are being treated at the prison’s clinic,” he told RFA, adding that they had suffered severe blows to the head.
Thirty of the victims were locked in cells following the riot, he said.
RFA contacted both the junta’s Prison Department and the Myanmar office of the International Committee of the Red Cross for more information on the situation but telephone calls and emails to both went unanswered.
About 160 political prisoners, including many of the victims, had recently been transferred from Kyaikmaraw Prison in Mon state, as well as Bago’s Thayarwady Prison, known for its poor conditions and crumbling infrastructure, Thaik Tun Oo said.
Two prominent members of the political activist organizations 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, Nu Nu Aung and Khat Khat Lwin, are being held at Daik-U Prison, said sources close to Nu Nu Aung, who added that she had been injured in the disturbance.
According to the rights group the Assistance Association for the Political Prisoners, as of Monday, more than 9,000 of the 26,877 people arrested since the coup had been sentenced to prison terms.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to food, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jun 14, 2024
- Event Description
Delhi lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena on Friday granted sanction to prosecute author Arundhati Roy under stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for her alleged 'provocative' speech at an event in 2010, PTI quoted Raj Niwas officials on Friday.
“Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena has sanctioned the prosecution of Arundhati Roy and former Professor of International Law in Central University of Kashmir, Dr. Sheikh Showkat Hussain, under section 45 (1) of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the case,” a Raj Niwas official said.
Last October, Saxena had granted sanction to prosecute Roy and former Central University of Kashmir professor Sheikh Showkat Hussain under section 196 of CrPC for commission of offences punishable under different sections of the Indian Penal Code.
"The issues discussed and spoken about at the conference propagated the separation of Kashmir from India," the Raj Niwas official said.
Besides Roy and Sheikh Showkat Hussain, the others who made speeches included late Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, SAR Geelani (anchor of the Conference and prime accused in the Parliament attack case) and Varavara Rao.
The complainant Sushil Pandit, an activist from Kashmir, had filed a complaint under Section 156(3) of CrPC before the Metropolitan Magistrate Court, New Delhi, who disposed of the complaint on November 27, 2010 with the directions to register an FIR.
It was alleged that Geelani and Arundhati Roy strongly propagated that Kashmir was never part of India and was forcibly occupied by the Armed Forces of India and every possible effort should be made for the independence of the J-K from India and recordings of the same were provided by the complainant.
Accordingly, an FIR was registered and an investigation was carried out, the officials added.
Roy has been a vocal critic of the Modi government and has criticised it on several issues.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jun 14, 2024
- Event Description
Guangzhou Intermediate Court today sentenced Sophia Huang Xueqin to five years in prison and labour activist Wang Jianbing to three years and six months in prison for “inciting subversion of state power”. Sophia Huang Xueqin said in court that she would appeal.
Sophia Huang Xueqin is a journalist who has been involved in several #MeToo campaigns to provide support and assistance to survivors of sexual assault and harassment. Wang Jianbing has provided legal support for people with disabilities and workers with occupational diseases. He is also a prominent supporter of the #MeToo movement in China.
Their conviction is related to their attendance at weekly gatherings with fellow activists, hosted by Wang Jianbing; their participation in online human rights education; and online posts on issues deemed “sensitive” by the Chinese government.
The pair were arrested in Guangzhou on 19 September 2021, the day before Huang was planning to leave China for the UK to study for a master’s degree.
Since their arrest, both activists have been prevented from seeing family members. Meanwhile, dozens of their friends have been summoned by the police and had their homes searched and electronic devices confiscated. Sophie Huang Xueqin is believed to have been subjected to ill-treatment in detention, leading to the dramatic deterioration of her health.
In January 2023, Sophia Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing were transferred to Guangzhou City No 1 Detention Centre, awaiting trial at the court.
The Chinese authorities systematically use national security charges with extremely vague provisions, such as “subverting state power” and “inciting subversion of state power”, to prosecute lawyers, scholars, journalists, activists, NGO workers, and others.
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention determined in 2022 that Wang Jianbing was being arbitrarily detained and has repeatedly called on China to repeal the crime of “inciting subversion” or bring it into line with international standards.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 13, 2024
- Event Description
On the evening of June 13, Taliban intelligence officers detained Danish, a freelance journalist, while he was traveling from the capital Kabul to Bagrami district, according to news reports and a person familiar with the case, who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity, due to fear of reprisal.
The source told CPJ that Danish was questioned over an April 3 report for the Khane Mawlana cultural center that was critical of the Taliban’s education policies and an April 21 Facebook post alleging the Taliban were using schools as military bases in Kapisa province.
Danish was held in an unknown location and severely beaten, sustaining a head injury, before being released on June 15 and going into hiding, the source said.
“The Taliban must immediately and impartially investigate the arbitrary detention and beating of journalist Abdullah Danish and hold those responsible to account,” said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi. “It is high time for the Taliban to take responsibility for the safety of the media and to allow reporters to critically cover issues of public interest without fear of reprisal.”
Danish previously worked as a broadcast director at Dunya Radio, a reporter and presenter at Mitra TV, and a program host and research manager at Maarif TV, the source told CPJ.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 12, 2024
- Event Description
The livelihoods of fisherfolk in Zambales have been largely affected by the rising tension in the West Philippine Sea and the lower catch due to recurring seasonal loss called “sigwada.” But instead of due assistance, they are subjected to so-called “visits” and interrogation by soldiers.
Fisherfolk group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) once again raised alarm over incidents of harassment experienced by fishers in Zambales.
Pamalakaya said fishers who joined their group’s two-day fishing expedition last May 30 to 31 in Zambales have been experiencing a series of harassment from members of the Philippine Army.
According to Pamalakaya-affiliated Panatag Fisherfolk Association, fisherfolk in Masinloc town were first visited by a soldier belonging to the 69th Infantry Battalion on June 1. The soldier asked the association’s president about the fishing expedition and other information about the group, including the whereabouts of their members.
The same soldier returned on June 12 and attempted to talk to the local leader of the town, but failed. The official then proceeded to question the members of the association, prodding them with the same questions and fishing information about the group and Pamalakaya.
This time, the members of the association said that the army officer was also showing them photos of some of the organizers of Pamalakaya and accusing them as alleged recruiters of the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines.
The last incident they recorded was on June 13, when an army officer went to the houses of fisherfolk who joined the fishing exhibition. According to the members, they were also asked the same questions about the expedition and the group.
Because of the increasing cases of harassment against its members, Pamalakaya filed a letter of complaint with the Commission of Human Rights over the weekend.
In a letter addressed to CHR Chair Richard Palpal-latoc, the group called for an on-site investigation in Masinloc town where the members are reportedly being harassed.
They claimed that during the “visits” the Philippine Army red-tagged their members. This, they added, goes against the Supreme Court ruling on the dangers of red-tagging.
“The military should have no business with Pamalakaya’s members and the organization’s legitimate activities,” said Pamalakaya in their complaint.
The livelihoods of fisherfolk in Zambales have been affected by the rising tension in the West Philippine Sea. They are also experiencing lower catch due to recurring seasonal loss called “sigwada.”
Apart from the incidents cited above, another elderly leader of Pamalakaya was also earlier subjected to harassment.
“Instead, the military should be securing our territorial waters and protecting our fishers against foreign aggressors, not surveilling fisherfolk who actively uphold their fishing rights,” the group added.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance , Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jun 12, 2024
- Event Description
Criminalization of the Nagari Kapa Pejuang Farmer Community occurred again while legal efforts were underway. Where on June 12 2024 five people from the community were summoned by the West Pasaman Police with an invitation for a clarifying interview regarding the report reported by PT Permata Hijau Pasaman (PHP) I to the community who are currently fighting for their rights to land for livelihood. Thursday, June 13, 2024
Even though the community is carrying out several legal efforts to resolve problems that have been suffering for so long, including Civil lawsuit Number 9/Pdt.G/ 2024/PN Psb, Cassation Number 7/Akta Kas/VI/2023/ PN Psb against the decision of the Padang High Court dated 27 June 2023 Number 130/PDT/2023/PT PDG. Apart from that, it is also a Priority Location for Agrarian Reform (LPRA) by the ATR BPN ministry in the 2024 Agrarian Reform Task Force (GTRA) program in accordance with the Central GTRA Decree (SK) for completion, chaired by the Regent of West Pasaman while the implementer of the West Pasaman BPN Office and Related Agencies in the GTRA Decree.
The community has also held two hearings at the West Pasaman Regency DPRD, with the result that the DPRD promised to form a Special Committee Team for governmental resolution regarding the conflict that occurred in Nagari Kapa between the Nagari Kapa Pejuang Farmer Community and PT PHP I (Wilmar Group). These are some of the efforts being made by the community to obtain their rights as citizens in accordance with Pancasila in the fifth principle of "social justice for all Indonesian people". According to Tuangku Muhammad Arif Datuak Majo Basa as Ninik Mamak in Nagari Kapa asked the enforcement officers to be neutral, because of the conflict between the people of Nagari Kapa and PT PHP I, efforts are ongoing and this problem is being handled by the ATR BPN Ministry and in Pasaman a Cluster Team has been formed. The task of Agrarian Reform is chaired directly by the Regent of West Pasaman to resolve the conflicts that occur.
One of the residents who was summoned by the West Pasaman Police, Hendri Saputra, "hopes that the Law Enforcement Officials, in this case the West Pasaman Police, will no longer summon us and other communities because the settlement and litigation process is ongoing, we hope that it will be resolved quickly by the parties concerned. ”.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Agricultural business
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jun 11, 2024
- Event Description
A Vietnamese human rights activist with refugee status in Thailand was arrested in Bangkok and now risks being deported to Vietnam, where he faces a 10-year prison sentence on terrorism charges.
Thai police arrested Y Quynh Bdap on June 11, according to his lawyer and rights activists. The arrest came exactly one year after dozens of people attacked two public agency headquarters in Vietnam’s Dak Lak province, in the Central Highlands, leaving nine dead.
Since then, scores of individuals have been tried and convicted in hearings that have been criticized as show trials. Y Quynh, who had left Vietnam in 2018, was sentenced in absentia to a decade in prison.
He has denied being involved in the attacks, calling the convictions politically motivated retaliation for his activism.
The area where the attacks took place is home to about 30 indigenous tribes who have a long history of conflict with the Vietnamese majority, and claim they have been discriminated against and persecuted.
They are often referred to as Montagnards, a term coined by French colonialists to describe the tribes, many of whom are Christians, but Vietnam has rejected use of the term.
Y Phic Hdok, who founded Montagnard Stand for Justice, or MSFJ, along with Y Quynh said he received a text message from Y Quynh on Tuesday reading: "I have been arrested."
A June 11 arrest warrant seen by RFA lists his arrest as a “warrant for extradited criminals” and notes he has been found guilty of acts of terrorism.
A Thai police official who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media told RFA the activist would likely face trial for "overstaying" his visa.
Granted refugee status
Y Quynh left Vietnam in 2018 and sought asylum in Thailand, and was granted refugee status that same year by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR. He has spent his time in Thailand collating rights abuses by the Vietnamese government for his MSFJ reports.
Because of his refugee status, Y Quynh has the right to resettle in a third country, and had applied for asylum in Canada. But his refugee card offers him little protection in Thailand, which has never ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention.
That has meant activists like Y Quynh can easily be picked up by Thai police on visa violations, and rights campaigners have accused Thailand of participating in transnational repression. A Human Rights Watch report issued last month noted Thailand facilitated forced returns and even abductions of refugees and dissidents.
His colleague, Y Phic, urged the Thai government to respect international human rights standards and reject Vietnam’s request to extradite Y Quynh.
“Because the UNHCR has recognized Y Quynh’s political refugee status, Thailand should have the obligation to protect his rights,” he said.
Officers from Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission met with Y Quynh on June 7 and sent a letter marked “most urgent” to the Immigration Bureau asking that he not be deported, given his refugee status and expected resettlement in Canada.
The letter cites Thailand’s anti-torture law, which prohibits extradition in cases where the deportee could face torture or forced disappearance.
‘Hunting me down’
In a video Y Quynh filmed days before his arrest, published by several rights campaigners immediately following, the activist says that Vietnamese authorities “have been hunting me down” since late 2023 and accused the Thai police of aiding their pursuit.
“Out of fear for the safety of my family and myself, we have been in hiding for the past six months,” he says. “But on June 6, 2024, the Thai police found our location and have surrounded us since then.”
In March, RFA reported that Thai police had been visiting Vietnamese refugees from the Central Highlands, urging them to return home, and that they were asking for the whereabouts of Y Quynh.
“There is a worrying trend of Thailand deporting HRDs [human rights defenders] awaiting UNHCR resettlement to neighbouring countries to face unfair trial,” Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights defenders wrote in a tweet about Y Quynh’s case.
Several Thai immigration officials declined to speak with RFA.
As a registered refugee, Y Quynh would have been entitled to protection from the UNHCR, which on its website tells asylum seekers in Thailand it will “advocate for your right to non-refoulement to be respected.”
It is unclear whether protection officers were present at his arrest, and the agency told RFA it would not comment on individual cases.
'Inexplicable'
A letter sent by his lawyer, Christopher MacLeod, to the UNHCR representative in Canada and Canada’s ambassador to Thailand, noted that Y Quynh attended an asylum claim interview at the Canadian Embassy one day before his arrest.
Afterwards, staff from the UN’s International Organization for Migration, or IOM, transported him “to a safe place to await Canada’s decision to grant him asylum.”
“It seems inexplicable that he could be arrested while under the protection of the UN,” MacLeod wrote.
Neither the IOM nor the Canadian UNHCR representative responded to requests for comment.
Since the attack first occurred, Vietnam has accused overseas groups of masterminding the attacks. In March, the Ministry of Public Security labeled Y Quynh’s Montagnard Stand for Justice as one of two “terrorist organizations” that helped plan the attacks.
Y Quynh has long denied such charges. In an interview with RFA last year, he insisted the Vietnamese authorities had used the attack in Dak Lak to slander him for the purpose of “smearing my reputation and silencing my voice of human rights protection.”
Rights groups have urged Thai authorities to release Y Quynh, arguing that there’s little to substantiate Vietnam’s allegations against him.
“The terrorism charges brought by the Vietnamese regime against Y Quynh Bdap are clearly baseless and trumped up and the Thai government must not be complicit in his refoulment, which is a violation of international law and standards,” said Josef Benedict, civil space research officer for global civil society alliance CIVICUS.
“This incident highlights a growing trend of transnational repression by Vietnam with activists and dissidents seeking refuge in Thailand facing arrests, harassment, surveillance and physical violence, often with the cooperation of Thai authorities.”
Phil Robertson, Director of Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates, said the activist would likely face violence in custody if forcibly returned to Vietnam.
“The Vietnamese government has a long, horrid track record of severely persecuting Montagnard political and religious activists, so there is a real fear that Y Quynh Bdap would face arrest, torture in custody and a long prison term if Thailand forced him back to Vietnam,” he said.
Last year, Duong Van Thai, a Vietnamese blogger disappeared from the streets of Bangkok in an apparent kidnapping with Vietnamese authorities later saying he was in state custody. The case was similar to that of RFA contributor Truong Duy Nhat, who disappeared from Bangkok in 2019 and reemerged in a Hanoi prison.
Y Quynh expressed such a fear in the final video he recorded.
He beseeched the UN, NGOs and democratic governments to “please protect me. Don’t let them arrest and bring me back to Vietnam as in the cases of Truong Duy Nhat and Thai Van Duong.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Jun 10, 2024
- Event Description
On 10 June, prosecutors requested 20 years in prison with confiscation of property for all 22defendants, who are charged with preparing for mass riots. Several face an additional charge of attempting to violently overthrow authority. The criminal proceedings were opened in response to the public opposition to the government’s decision regarding the border dispute over the Kempir-Abad water reservoir and the surrounding lands with Uzbekistan, in 2022.
During the investigation and trial, the detainees, including Rita Karasartova, a renowned human rights defender, have been held in inhumane conditions and have not been allowed to access the medical treatment they need for deteriorating health conditions.
The trial has been conducted behind closed doors. The defendants have repeatedly reported violations of their rights, including lack of access to adequate medical care and denial of the right to a fair hearing, as the court has routinely rejected defence motions and ignored substantial evidence that contradicts the prosecution’s claims.
- Impact of Event
- 22
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to fair trial, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jun 10, 2024
- Event Description
Kingsrich Myanmar Fashion garment factory workers in Shwepyitha Township held a protest on Monday calling for a daily wage increase. The Burma Army later quelled the protest. DVB was unable to confirm if arrests were made. “They asked who the leader of the protest was but everyone said it did not have one,” an anonymous source close to the workers told DVB. The garment factory produces clothing for Swedish fashion retailer H&M. Workers there report that they have been barred from forming a labor union. Negotiations between workers, factory management, and the Burma Army are underway.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of association, Labour rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jun 10, 2024
- Event Description
The police forcibly dispersed the "All Eyes on Papua" demonstration which was held on Jalan Puputan, Denpasar City, on Monday (10/6). This movement aims to respond to the demands of the Awyu Tribe and Moi Tribe regarding customary forests.
Based on Kumparan's monitoring, four people were arrested by the police when they broke up the demonstration. One of them is a representative of LBH Bali. "There is 1 person, that's right (the LBH representative was detained by the police). We are currently preparing a press release, please be patient," said LBH Bali Director, Rezky Pratiwi, when contacted.
The demonstration held by dozens of students initially went peacefully from 11.00 WITA. The participants conveyed a number of demands and expressed themselves by dancing a number of typical Papuan dances.
The police asked the crowd to disperse when the representatives were about to read a statement. The police then pushed back the protest participants, which sparked conflict. The action participants responded by throwing stones.
"We have provided a place to convey aspirations. I ask that the action be finished and the participants disperse," said a police officer who led the command.
The police were then seen hitting some of the demonstrators and pouring water from water cannons to disperse them. The police also surrounded and arrested some of the demonstration participants. The police threatened to arrest participants who did not comply with orders to disperse. The demonstration participants finally dispersed at around 14.00 WITA.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Minority rights defender, NGO staff, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jun 9, 2024
- Event Description
Citizen journalist Ms. Zhang Zhan was released from Shanghai Women’s Prison on May 13 after serving four years in prison on charges related to her documentation and report on the Covid-19 outbreak in Wuhan. Recently, Zhang Zhan was warned by Shanghai police not to touch the “red line.”
Ms. Wang Jianhong, a British activist and founder of the Zhang Zhan Concern Group, said, “Zhang Zhan, a prominent Chinese citizen journalist, sent a message on June 9 on her WeChat Moments that she was being questioned and threatened by the Xuanqiao police station of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau’s Pudong branch. The police warned her that if she touched the “red line” again, she would go in again (referring to jail). In her post, Zhang Zhan said: “Whose red line are you all protecting? Is the life of the people the red line? Or is it “the opinion of superiors”? I don’t want to go in (to jail), and I’m not the one who should go in.
On May 29, Zhang Zhan shared her weaknesses, fears, and hopes as a Christian on the Christian house church’s online networking platform, Five O’Clock in the Afternoon in China. She immediately broke down in tears when she appeared in the video, tearfully saying that she is not strong and loves to cry. While in prison, she prayed for healing for her cellmate’s illness, and it was amazing that God heard and answered her prayer. Even though she is still under surveillance and has no freedom after her release, she wants to attend Sunday worship and meet with her brothers and sisters. She wept several times during the sharing. She is thankful for everyone’s continued prayers for her.
In the video, she recounted how the experience of being with God in prison produces gratitude, not a single complaint, but rather pure and ultimate joy. This experience showed her that the Kingdom of Heaven exists and that the suffering in the world is temporary.
It is not known whether the subpoena has anything to do with her remarks in this video. Did she cross over a “red line” simply by the act of appearing in the video?
After Zhang Zhan’s release, friends at home and abroad were very concerned about her health. Shanghai lawyer Peng Yonghe broke through the resistance as soon as possible and successfully visited Zhang Zhan; however, on May 31, Peng was summoned by the local police to Xuanqiao police station, which has jurisdiction over where he was, and a number of his electronic products were seized. The police did not produce any paperwork.
In the earliest stages of the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, the population of China was simply unfamiliar with the new virus and the disaster it was going to cause. In 2020, Zhang Zhan’s reporting from the ground in Wuhan symbolized the public’s mistrust of the government’s handling of the initial outbreak and their desire for unfiltered, truthful information. She was on the front lines of the pandemic, deep in the corridors of hospitals, where a city of 11 million people was as silent as a dead city, its streets empty. Soon the crackdown began, the country went into a tight lockdown, and she was silenced, arrested and imprisoned.
Unfortunately, China sees those who document the truth as forces of social destabilization, not realizing that stifling the voice of society is the root of true unrest. Many of those who have tried to speak out on behalf of Zhang Zhan within China seem to have been targeted as well. Zhang Zhan’s personal freedom is an indicator of the rule of law in China. There may be division amongst the officials and private citizens, but both sides want Chinese society to make more remarkable strides.
The People’s Republic of China must unconditionally respect the fundamental human rights of its own great citizen, Ms. Zhang Zhan, and ChinaAids call on the government of China to immediately cease its restrictive measures against her, including surveillance, censorship, harassment and intimidation.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 9, 2024
- Event Description
In Negros, elements of the 15th IBPA elements barged into the house of fisherfolk leader Joselito Macapobre in Barangay Guiljungan, Cauayan, Negros Occidental on June 11, 2024 while he was out selling fish. According to Macapobre’s wife, the men introduced themselves as “kaupod” (comrades), asked for his whereabouts and opened the bags inside his home, claiming to be in search of something Macapobre left for them. The soldiers had earlier summoned Macapobre on June 9 to “discuss” his submission of an affidavit in support of development workers of Paghida-et sa Kauswagan Development Group Inc (PDG) facing trumped-up terrorism financing cases. Macapobre refused the summons for fear of being coerced into retracting his affidavit.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jun 9, 2024
- Event Description
The Indonesian Forum for the Environment or Walhi regrets the attempt to forcibly pick up Muhriyono, one of the farmers in Pakel Village, Licin District, Banyuwangi Regency , East Java. Muhriyono was forcibly picked up by the Banyuwangi Resort Police, Sunday (9/6/2024) at around 19.30.
The retrieval of Muhriyono is related to a case of alleged assault against a security personnel of PT Bumisari Maju Sukses plantation company. The incident took place last March.
In a virtual and offline press conference on Tuesday (11/6/2024), Executive Director of Walhi East Java, Wahyu Eka Setyawan, stated that what happened to Muhriyono was one of many reckless actions carried out by the police.
"There is a pattern of violation of procedures, because the process is very fast and it seems as if farmers in Pakel are dangerous people for society and the state. "The stigma was conveyed by them, one of them from the police, plantations which actually have their roots in the agrarian conflict in Pakel," said Wahyu, who is part of the Advocacy Working Team for Agrarian Sovereignty.
According to Wahyu, agrarian conflict in Pakel has been ongoing for so long that the rights of residents, particularly small farmers, are often lost. In addition to their economic rights, their right to speak and their citizenship rights are also lost because they are deemed to have behaved badly.
The Pakel conflict is a problem of land ownership inequality. The community only owns a small portion of the village area, while the rest is occupied by Perhutani and claimed by plantation companies. These companies hold the right to use the land (HGU), but the process is considered odd as it does not involve the community.
Cases like this not only happen in Pakel, but also in other areas. The Ministry of Agrarian and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN), according to Wahyu, should not include land such as that in Pakel in the HGU, but distribute it to the community.
"We have repeatedly conveyed this to ATR/BPN to resolve this conflict. ATR/BPN promised to do areview because there were allegations of malpractice. "We ask that they be returned to Pakel Village, released from the plantations as promised by the government regarding redistribution," he said.
Wahyu also assessed that the efforts made by the Banyuwangi Regency Government (Pemkab) to address the issue were inadequate. The Pemkab Banyuwangi did not establish a Land Dispute Resolution Team, but a Social Conflict Resolution Team.
The Head of Pakel Farmers Association, Harun, stated that the residents of Pakel were shocked because according to Muhriyono's family, he was suddenly visited by unknown persons claiming to be police officers who arrived in three cars on Sunday night.
Also read: 87 Percent Realized Forest Area Release
At that time, Muhriyono was having dinner. The unknown person then showed the (arrest) letter, but the family had not had time to read its contents. "According to the story, it was his son (Muhriyono's son), who brought (arrested) it from the police, but not talking from the police or Banyuwangi Police," he said.
eeling panicked and confused, the residents immediately went to the Banyuwangi Police station that night. They stayed at the police station until late at night.
Due to not obtaining definite information regarding the whereabouts of the person being searched for, on Monday (10/5/2024) at 01:30, residents eventually returned to their respective homes.
"Because we were tired and many young children were with us, we eventually agreed to go home. At that time, the weather was rainy day and night. Despite the rain, we still searched for the whereabouts of our missing friend (Muhriyono)," said Harun online.
On Monday afternoon, according to Harun, residents returned to the Banyuwangi Police Headquarters to inquire about the whereabouts of Muhriyono. They finally received confirmation that Muhriyono was arrested by the Banyuwangi Police on the grounds that he had ignored a summons and refused a letter sent by the police.
According to information from his child, Muhriyono only received one summons letter from the Banyuwangi Regional Police. The second letter was sent through a courier, but the name stated on the letter was Muh. Riono (not Muhriyono), causing the recipient of the letter to assume it was for a different person.
Edy Kurniawan from YLBHI also expressed concern. He believes that what was done to Muhriyono was an arbitrary action and a violation of human rights. Procedurally, Muhriyono was declared a suspect on June 10.
On the same date, the family received a detention order and an arrest warrant. The arrest process was carried out on June 9, 2024. "This means that the police took action - which is why we released the term 'kidnapping' - because it was not based on valid grounds," he said.
Also read: After 26 years of agrarian conflict related to the Kalibakar Plantation in Malang, it ends peacefully
Edy considers that the arrest of Muhriyono was actually unnecessary and excessive. The police should have carried out a series of investigations and investigations based on a process that is accountable and transparent.
The police should first take persuasive measures. If Muhriyono will complicate the legal process, then arrest can be made, but human rights must be considered. "There should be no violence, it should not be done at night, and the community around should be taken into consideration," he said.
According to Edy, this is not the first or second time the Pakel incident has happened. Previously, in 2023, three Pakel residents were arrested and went to court. However, he was finally free after being ruled onslag (free from all legal demands) by the Supreme Court.
"In the Pakel case, we see that what is being done is not in the context of law enforcement, but rather law enforcement that favors the company or there are indications that law enforcement is being carried out to intimidate residents," he said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jun 9, 2024
- Event Description
Authorities across China are targeting dissidents and petitioners ahead of next week’s key meeting of the ruling Communist Party, placing them under house arrest or escorting them out of town on enforced "vacations," Radio Free Asia has learned.
Several high-profile activists including political journalist Gao Yu, rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang and political commentator Zha Jianguo have been targeted for security measures ahead of the third plenary session of the party's Central Committee, a person in Beijing familiar with the situation who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals said.
The meeting is scheduled to start Monday at the Jingxi Hotel in Beijing in a bid to boost the struggling economy.
"I can name several people in Beijing who have been notified by state security police of house arrest or [enforced] travel, including Gao Yu, Zha Jianguo ... Pu Zhiqiang and many other rights activists," the person said. "Some have already left Beijing."
The operation is part of China's "stability maintenance" system, which kicks into high gear targeting those the authorities see as potential troublemakers ahead of top-level meetings and politically sensitive dates in the calendar.
Activists in Wuhan reported similar arrangements, with one participant in last year's "silver protests" among those targeted.
"Tong Menglan has been taken to Kunming by state security police for a few days," a Wuhan-based activist who gave only the surname Liu for fear of reprisals told RFA Mandarin on Tuesday.
"Several dissidents have been getting calls from police nearly every day, telling them to stay home and to share their cell phone locations with police, so they can be sure they've stayed home," he said.
Keeping them quiet
The "stability maintenance" system typically targets independent journalists, rights activists and lawyers, anyone with a grievance against the government, people who complain about or petition the authorities, and anyone with a track record of posting online content that the government doesn't like.
Meanwhile, an army of internet censors, many of whom work for private service providers, keeps a list of metaphors, code words, homophones and other workarounds to help them block and delete unwanted content.
Fellow Wuhan-based rights activist who gave only the surname Sun for fear of reprisals said he is currently under house arrest. "One reason is the July 1 Communist Party anniversary, and another is the upcoming third plenum of the Central Committee,” he said.
"Anyone who tries to go to Beijing will be put under house arrest," he said. "Even if you just say you are going to Beijing in a group chat, they will target you. They get paid to maintain stability.”
Government-backed censors are also blocking any groups on WeChat that typically discuss politics and current affairs, according to a Hunan-based dissident who gave only the surname Tian for fear of reprisals.
"Two of the groups I'm in for politically sensitive dissidents or political prisoners have been shut down two or three days ahead of [the plenum]," Tian said.
Unusually strict
Several dissidents told RFA Mandarin that controls are unusually strict this year.
"Firstly, this year's third plenum was delayed for so long, and secondly, two defense ministers have been arrested just beforehand," Tian said.
"They're under a lot of pressure due to the situation at home and internationally, and due to the economy," he said. "They're a little nervous."
Tian said he hasn't been put under house arrest -- yet.
A leaked directive from a county-level Stability Maintenance and Security Command Center in the southwestern province of Sichuan that was circulating on social media on Tuesday ordered staff to target any petitioners from the county who are still in Beijing, and bring them back home under escort by July 12.
China's army of petitioners, who flood the Communist Party's official complaints departments daily, frequently report being held in unofficial detention centers known as "black jails," beaten, or otherwise harassed if they persist in a complaint beyond its initial rejection at the local level, even if they follow legal channels.
They are often escorted home forcibly by "interceptors" sent by their local governments to prevent negative reports from reaching the ears of higher authorities. They face surveillance, violent treatment and possible detention on criminal charges, particularly during major political events or on dates linked to the pro-democracy movement.
A petitioner who gave only the surname Li for fear of reprisals told RFA Mandarin that she had just been brought back to Sichuan's provincial capital Chengdu by interceptors.
"Third plenums of the Central Committee are closely bound up with petitioners," Li said, adding that some people she knows are already under house arrest.
But she said it was "normal" for petitioners to go to Beijing to complain about problems.
"They shouldn't restrict and suppress petitioners just because there's a meeting on, when the government itself hasn't done anything to resolve these issues," she said.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jun 8, 2024
- Event Description
KARAPATAN condemns the arrest of animal rights and climate justice activist Edison Yu last June 8, 2024 and demands that the unjust and unfounded charges against him be dropped.
Yu was set to join a solidarity action opposing the genocide of the Palestinian people in front of the Israeli embassy at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City, when he was arrested.
According to reports, Yu was near the Israeli embassy, waiting for a friend and taking pictures of the buildings in the area to while away his time when diplomat security officer Rodolfo Osorio Jr. confronted him and demanded an ID. Yu refused and said he would just leave. Unknown to him, however, the security personnel had followed him as he walked away. The latter caught up with Yu in the vicinity of BDO and suddenly hit him in the face, and an altercation between the two happened. Yu is confident that CCTV footages in the area will show that he was a victim of assault and not the other way around.
Ironically, it is Yu who is now detained at Camp Bagong Diwa and facing complaints of alarm and scandal, unjust vexation, physical assault and oral disobedience.
KARAPATAN supports the call for the immediate release of Edison Yu. The right to protest against Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people should be respected and upheld.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 7, 2024
- Event Description
Music teacher Dang Dang Phuoc was able to call home for the first time in two months. His wife, Le Thi Ha, said that in the June 12 call, her husband gave more details about why he was shackled for 10 days after her visit on May 9. Before she left the visiting room that day, he gave her a small piece of paper containing the phone number of an inmate who’d just been transferred to Xuan Phuoc Prison, to be passed to his family so they’d know where he was. In Vietnam, families rarely are notified when a prisoner is transferred to a new prison facility. Immediately afterwards, Phuoc was taken to the office and ordered to write a “confession letter”; in it, he said he knew his action was against prison rules but thought it was only a minor infraction. The warden allegedly took a vote from all of Phuoc’s cellmates (about 26 people), and everyone agreed that his action only warranted a minor disciplinary response. Nevertheless, Phuoc was still put in shackles and kept in isolation. During those 10 days, Phuoc refused to eat to protest the unfair treatment and lost 10 kg., according to his wife. And although just one leg was shackled, after five days, his ankle became severely swollen and required medical attention. After a visit by the prison medical staff, the shackle was removed and transferred to his other leg for the remaining five days.
In a bit of good news, Ha told her husband that she was able to go to Saigon to attend their son’s graduation ceremony. However, not long after she returned to Buon Me Thuot in the Central Highlands, Ha received a summons from Phu Yen provincial police (200Km away) to appear “in person” on June 7 to resolve the issues she cited in the letter she wrote to them on June 2, asking why her husband had been disciplined. Ha said it seemed absurd that they could not simply respond to her by a letter like they’d done many times before instead of requiring her to travel such a long distance.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: wife of detained blogger intimidated by police
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 7, 2024
- Event Description
Security agents allegedly assaulted a Vietnamese-American family at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City after they refused to leave Vietnam immediately after being denied entry.
Nguyen Thi Bich Hanh, a former literature teacher, told Radio Free Asia (RFA) about the ordeal she and her children experienced when they arrived in Vietnam on June 7. Hanh, who married freedom of expression activist Thai Van Tu and later settled in the United States, is known for helping Vietnamese students gain a multifaceted and impartial education about Vietnamese Communist leaders. She said that she and her children were taken to a closed room in the airport, where security officers took turns mistreating them.
According to Hanh, airport police requested they board a plane to South Korea to return to the U.S. after they were refused entry. However, she denied the order because one of her sons had severe asthma and was in an emergency situation, and he needed immediate treatment. Tan Son Nhat police authorities called in a doctor, but Hanh said the doctor did nothing to treat her son. Eventually, Hanh had to treat her son with asthma medicine and a ventilator they brought with them from the U.S.
The security officers at Tan Son Nhat International Airport reportedly locked Hanh and her children in a closed room where they could not communicate with their family or anyone outside. Hanh said most of the officers who interrogated them were in plain clothes, so she did not know their names or positions. After two days in custody, the police released them following pressure from the U.S. Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City, and they were made to board a flight to South Korea. The former teacher said she had returned to Vietnam to visit her ailing 89-year-old mother in Nghe An Province.
After RFA reporters contacted Tan Son Nhat Airport authorities to verify Hanh's allegations, a security staff member said on a phone that the information was “incorrect.” According to the person who answered the call, if a person is denied entry to Vietnam, he or she will be deported back to the country where they previously transited before arriving there. The airport staff added that if that person’s name is on a list of dissidents, “immigration security will look into it, but there will be no beatings or arrests.”
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Deportation, Intimidation and Threats, Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Right to health, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Family of HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 7, 2024
- Event Description
On 07 June 2024, Pakistan authorities filed a First Information Report (FIR), including false sedition charges, against Baloch woman human rights defender Dr. Mahrang Baloch. The FIR is linked to a full day conference held by Mahrang Baloch in the Quetta Press Club on 18 May 2024, which was unjustly disrupted by local authorities.
Dr. Mahrang Baloch is a woman human rights defender based in Balochistan, and a leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) campaigning against unlawful enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings by the Pakistani authorities in the Balochistan Province. Balochistan is a region that has experienced decades of violence, and systemic abuses by Pakistan authorities. This includes the military, intelligence agencies and armed groups that continue to target local commmunities and human rights defenders who seek to document and advocate against the violations. In November 2023, Dr. Mahrang Baloch was a key figure in the Baloch Long March, organized in response to the extra judicial killing of a Baloch youth in Turbut, Balochistan and which galvanized into a peaceful march calling for an end to the atrocities including enforced diappearances and killings. Authorities responded with violence and reprisals against peaceful protesters, including Dr. Mahrang Baloch.
On 07 June 2024, a FIR bearing number 61/24 was filed against Dr. Mahrang Baloch, including charges of sedition linked to a conference held on 18 May 2024. The event, which was due to take place at the Quetta Press Club, was disrupted by local police, who locked the gates to the press club in order to prevent the BYC members from attending the full day conference. No clear reasons were provided for the unlawful blockade on the press club. When BYC members entered the premises, the SSP Operation and Quetta DIG cordoned off the press club building and the Quetta Metropolitan Corporation (QMC) office until the conference was concluded. Undettered by the threats, intimidation and reprisal, the BYC continued the planned event, which highlighted human rights issues in Balochistan. There was particular emphasis on the rights and concerns of residents in Gwadar – a coastal town in Balochistan – where residents have experienced increasing militarization and attempts to forcibly displace local populations. This displacement has been motivated by the desire to make way for state development programs, linked to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor and the building of a new port.
The FIR filed on 7 June against Dr. Mahrang Baloch accuses her and BYC members of several offences, including unlawful assembly, deterring public servants from discharging their duty, rioting, condemnation of the creation of the state, advocacy of the abolition of its sovereignty, and sedition. Dr. Mahrang Baloch also faces two separate FIRs filed during the Baloch Long March in 2023, which includes serious offences of supporting militancy and terrorism.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jun 7, 2024
- Event Description
Hundreds of residents of Torobulu, Laeya District, South Konawe Regency, protested in front of the Southeast Sulawesi (Sultra) Regional Police, in Kendari, Wednesday (12/6/2024). This action was a response to efforts to criminalize two Torobulu residents which continued to stage II - the case files have been transferred to the Kendari District Prosecutor's Office (Kejari).
The two residents who were criminalized were Haslilin (30), female, and Andi Firmansyah (41), male, who were accused of obstructing or disrupting mining business activities in accordance with Article 162 of Law No. 3 of 2020 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining (Minerba). ) jo Article 55 of the Criminal Code.
Muhammad Ansar, from LBH Makassar, representing the legal advisory team Haslilin and Andi Firmansyah assessed that the naming of two Torobulu residents as suspects was an act of criminalization of environmental and human rights (HAM) fighters. He said that the constitution states that everyone has the right to a good and healthy living environment as part of human rights.
"Therefore, we assess that the legal process against Ms. Haslilin and Mr. Andi with both of them being named as suspects is nothing more than an act of criminalization. This act of criminalization will endanger the right of public participation to obtain a good and healthy environment guaranteed by the Constitution," said Ansar, Wednesday. (12/6/2024).
This case started when Haslilin and Andi Firmansyah, together with other Torobulu residents, visited a PT Wijaya Intan Nusantara (PT WIN) excavator unit belonging to Frans Salim Kalalo, on November 6 2023. The heavy equipment was dredging nickel ore in Torobulu Village.
PT WIN's activities are only approximately 100 meters from residential areas and very close to the main road. The aim of the residents' arrival was to find out whether the mining activity was in accordance with regulations or not.
"We came here to find out whether the mining activities carried out comply with regulations. The mining area is very close to residential areas. Even though previously it had been agreed that each party should refrain, there should be no mining activities yet. "At the meeting there were village heads, sub-district heads and Torobulu residents," said Andi Firmansyah.
Residents protested because they did not want landslides and dust covering residents' houses due to mining activities to repeat themselves as had happened before. In addition, the residents' 2 water sources have been damaged, the residents' rice plants are damaged during the rainy season, not to mention the dust. Because of this, Andi Firmansyah and Haslilin asked that the excavator be pulled back far from residential areas.
"We came not to arrest, but to question why there was activity. "We also don't want any more landslides, our water sources being damaged, and dust entering our houses which we have been experiencing because of mining activities," said Haslilin.
However, via letter number: S.Pgl/234/VI/RES.5.5./2024/Ditreskrimsus and letter number: S.Pgl/235/VI/RES.5.5./2024/Ditreskrimsus, dated June 7 2024, Southeast Sulawesi Regional Police instead summoned both of them to be handed over to the Kendari Prosecutor's Office (Phase II).
"We consider that PT WIN's use of Article 162 of the Mineral and Coal Law has an evil aim, namely to silence the residents of Torobulu, therefore, we urge law enforcement officials, prosecutors and courts to maintain the dignity of the law by not criminalizing Mrs. Haslilin and Mr. Andi Firmansyah," said Ansar.
The Director of Walhi Sultra, Andi Rahman, believes that Andi Firmansyah and Haslilin should be protected, not punished. Because what Andi Firmansyah and Haslilin and other Torobulu residents are doing is an effort to protect the environment and defend their living space from the threat of mining.
Andi explained, Article 66 of Law no. 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management, it is very clear that anyone who fights for the right to a good and healthy environment cannot be prosecuted criminally or sued civilly.
"Therefore, it would be very strange if Ms. Haslilin and Andi Firmansyah were prosecuted, the question would arise, who is the law for?" Andi said.
In the ongoing process of criminalization efforts, in front of the Southeast Sulawesi Regional Police, residents also voiced the conditions in Torobulu which continue to face mining activities.
Andi said that residents had to pay a high price due to ongoing mining activities in Torobulu. Environmental damage is visible to the naked eye around residential areas. He said, there are only days left, if the mining continues, residents will slowly be pushed out of their living space.
In this action, the residents of Torobulu issued a statement of their position and demands, namely to stop criminalization efforts against Andi Firmansyah and Haslilin, who are environmental fighters, as well as the criminalization of other residents of Torobulu Village.
Then the masses also asked for the rights of fishermen in Torobulu Village and the residents' living space to be returned. Residents also demand an end to environmental destruction and the revocation of PT WIN's IUP.
"It is important to note that the transfer of case files and suspects (Phase II) to the Kendari District Prosecutor's Office which was planned to be carried out on June 12 2024 has been postponed until June 20 2024," said Andi Rahman.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Jun 6, 2024
- Event Description
Madhesh Province bureau Chief of Nayapatrika National Daily, Hadis Khuddar, was attacked and taken under control while reporting in Dhanusha on June 6.
Freedom Forum's representative for the province Rajan Singh informed that police attacked Khuddar while reporting on a protest by youths at District Police Office, Dhanusha premises. Local youths were protesting at the office demanding fair investigation on a case of attack upon a local youth with knife.
"While journalist Khuddar was taking a video of the protest, policepersons attacked him and seized his mobile phone. Journalist Khuddar showed his press identity card but they did not stop and took him to the police station", shared representative Singh.
After an hour, Khuddar was released by holding discussion among fellow journalists and police officers. The police chief has also assured of taking action against the policeperson who detained the journalist, said representative Singh.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jun 6, 2024
- Event Description
Mumbai’s Jai Bhim Nagar colony saw a hoard of demolitions on June 6th which also left several injured as they protested the demolition of their homes and tried to save their belongings.
On 6th June, just two days after the results for India’s 18th Lok Sabha elections were announced, Mumbai’s most marginalised saw their homes raised to the ground. Not just that, over 35 people were injured in the process.
The area called Jai Bhim Nagar witnessed a brutal demolition undertaken under the supervision of the police and municipal corporation officials. Armed with JCBs, cranes, and other heavy machinery, the officials entered the area without warning and started the demolition of homes.
This operation was conducted in a hasty manner; many residents were unable to save their personal belongings and valuables. Scores of people even reportedly lost their valuable documents in the process as they were not allowed to enter the area. Many locals have claimed that the demolitions took place due to certain builders, though there is little clarity on the official’s motivations. NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad has asked why private bouncers were present at the demolition.
Furthermore, there have been no resettlement or rehabilitation related arrangements made for the displaced residents. The demolition did not just leave scores of families homeless but also destroyed their personal and essential property leaving them homeless. Indian Express reported that the residents had protested the demolition, and had invoked Dr B R Ambedkar when the police came. The colony reportedly housed over 500-600 ‘jhuggies.’
However, the demolition did not just lead to displaced residents but also saw reports of harrowing violence and arrests. Children and the elderly were especially affected. Several videos circulating on social media have shown police officers beating residents, including children and the elderly. As per reports, about 66 and 75 people have been arrested and detained in Byculla and Taloja jails.
A Government Resolution (GR) issued by the state explicitly mentions that no ‘jhuggi; or house, regardless of whether it is on government or private land, can be demolished between June 1 and September 30 due to the monsoon season. Despite this clear order, the recent demolition in Jai Bhim Nagar has taken place, leaving many homeless at a time when Mumbai’s weather will also be at its most difficult for displaced people.
The police have justified these arrests by alleging that the people were involved in stone-pelting incidents. However, residents allege that the violence was provoked by goons hired by a builder who had vested interests in the demolition.
Meanwhile, civic officials have stated that the structures were erected illegally and conveyed that the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) had directed the removal of these structures. According to them, notices were served to the slum-dwellers on June 1.
On June 9th, a peaceful protest was taken out by civil society organisations, activists, and citizens of the Jai Bhim Nagar Powai Rescue Committee at Jai Bhim Nagar to protest what they say are illegal demolitions carried out by the BMC.
They raised three crucial demands which include the demand for resettlement for all residents or the return of land rebuilding their homes. Secondly, they have also asked that compensation be given to the people for the damages caused by the police during the demolition, and lastly, they have asked that all charges against those detained and arrested be withdrawn.
Sabrang India reported, narratives from the ground, saying that they also demand strict action against the MCGM and police officers responsible for the demolition which is violation of the state government’s GR. “We call for an investigation into the role of a builder in inciting violence and hiring private bouncers to act on behalf of the state. If our demands are not met, we will continue our ongoing struggle.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Raid, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to housing, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 6, 2024
- Event Description
Authorities in Vietnam’s Dak Lak province have refused to issue a passport to former political prisoner Huynh Thuc Vy, for "national security reasons," she told Radio Free Asia.
However, the provincial police department’s Security Investigation Agency didn’t provide any documents to support the decision.
Thuc Vy, 39, is a co-founder of Vietnam Women for Human Rights and the author of many articles on democracy and human rights.
She was sentenced to 33 months in prison for "insulting the national flag" in November 2018, but released in June, three months early.
On June 6, she went to the Immigration Department in Dak Lak to apply for a new passport because her old one was confiscated by border security in 2015 when she was preparing to go to Bangkok to attend a digital security training course by Reporters Without Borders.
She was told she was barred from leaving the country until June 26.
On June 27, Thuc Vy applied for a passport online and was asked to visit the immigration department.
“The security officers of Dak Lak province informed me that I am still on an exit ban, so they will not issue a passport for me,” she told RFA on Friday.
“They said not granting a passport is not permanent but will depend on my attitude, meaning whether I continue to speak up.”
Thuc Vy recently started a food charity near her home along with her brother Huynh Trong Hieu, asking people to donate money to help provide 50 free lunches a day to poor patients at a local hospital.
During the meeting on July 9, authorities warned her that "distributing charity gifts if not done properly will result in criminal liability."
Thuc Vy said she would stop accepting donations and wouldn't hand out any more free meals after using up the money already donated.
RFA Vietnamese called the Immigration Department of Dak Lak provincial police department to verify her claims but the reporter was asked to bring a letter of introduction and make inquiries in person.
The 2019 Law on Entry and Exit of Vietnamese Citizens states that authorities can refuse to issue a passport for “national defense and security reasons according to the decision of the minister of national defense or the minister of public security."
The ministers can decide the duration of the ban based on when they believe the person is no longer a threat to defense and security.
Thuc Vy said the police told her not to speak to the media, not to write articles about social issues and not to gather with “other government critics.”
"It feels like I no longer have my civil rights because,” she said.
“I thought that when I was released from prison I was free and could return to a normal life, but it turned out that they continued to oppress me and don’t let me have a life like a normal citizen.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Restrictions on Movement, Travel Restriction
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jun 4, 2024
- Event Description
The Supreme Court today (4 June) sentenced activist Nutchanon Pairoj to 1 month in prison, suspended for 2 years, and a fine of 500 baht on a contempt of court charge relating to a protest on 29 April 2021 at the Criminal Court.
Nutchanon was previously found guilty and sentenced to 4 months in prison by the Criminal Court. The Appeal Court upheld the guilty verdict, but reduced his sentence to 1 month in prison on the grounds that the penalty given by the Criminal Court was too severe. Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said that the Supreme Court ruled to suspend his sentence on the grounds that the protest took place on the steps to the Criminal Court building, not inside the court, and fining him and putting him on probation would be better.
In addition to the fine, the Supreme Court required Nutchanon to report to a probation officer 3 times over a period of 1 year and perform 24 hours of community service.
On 29 April 2021, a crowd gathered on the steps of the Ratchadaphisek Criminal Court while lawyers went to file a bail request for 7 activists who were detained pending trial at the time on royal defamation charges. During the protest, Benja and a group of other students came to the Criminal Court to submit an open letter signed by over 10,000 people demanding the release of detained activists.
When judge Chanathip Muanpawong did not come out to receive the letter, activist Benja Apan scattered pieces of paper printed with the names of those who signed the letter on the steps of the court building. She also read out a poem by Anon Nampa, which criticised the judicial process and called on judges to grant justice to the people.
During the protest, Nutchanon gave a speech on the steps of the court, saying that he does not count the judges as alumni of Thammasat University, where he was currently studying, because they do not love the people as stated in the university’s motto. He also shouted for Chanathip to come receive their open letter and said that the judges “have no backbone.”
Nutchanon said that he made the statement because he believes that denying detained activists bail rights is an injustice that goes against legal principles. The court found him guilty of contempt of court, not for expressing opinions different from the court, but rather for joining a protest, shouting, and acting rudely in a court area in an attempt to use a crowd to pressure the court, which violates the court’s independence in ruling on a case.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jun 4, 2024
- Event Description
Hong Kong police arrested four people on the 35th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. Among them, an elderly woman was apprehended on suspicion of acting with seditious intention under the city’s new, homegrown security law.
Two men and two women were arrested around Causeway Bay on Tuesday, which marked 35 years since Beijing sent the People’s Liberation Army to put an end to a months-long democracy movement led by students in China.
It is estimated that hundreds, perhaps thousands, died in the military crackdown.
No more vigils Hong Kong used to be one of the few places on Chinese soil where annual vigils were held to commemorate the victims who died in the 1989 crackdown. But police banned the gathering at Causeway Bay’s Victoria Park for the first time in 2020 citing Covid-19 restrictions, and imposed the same ban in the following year.
No official commemoration has been held since the vigil organiser – Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China – disbanded in September 2021.
Causeway Bay on Tuesday saw extensive police presence with uniform and plainclothes officers stationed at nearly every corner. Counter Terrorism Response Unit personnel were on standby outside the SOGO mall, while an armoured vehicle drove along Hennessy Road in the evening.
From late afternoon onward, several people were taken aside or stopped and searched by police.
‘Seditious intention’ Police told HKFP shortly after midnight on Wednesday that a 68-year-old woman had been arrested under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, the city’s new security law enacted in March and known locally as Article 23. She allegedly committed “crimes related to seditious intention” by chanting slogans on Yee Wo Street in the afternoon.
Local media cited sources saying the arrestee was activist Alexandra Wong, nicknamed “Grandma Wong,” who was often seen at the 2019 pro-democracy protests.
A 24-year-old man and a 69-year-old woman were said to have “acted suspiciously in public” on Yee Wo Street at night. Police said the man had attacked two officers after the pair was intercepted, and he was later arrested on suspicion of assaulting police. The woman was apprehended for alleged public disorder.
Police also arrested a 23-year-old man in a park in Hing Fat Street for common assault after he allegedly attacked two security guards. HKFP witnessed security guards surround a young man wearing a black shirt in Victoria Park, shielding him from view with five or six umbrellas. The man was heard calling for help, telling HKFP: “[The security guards] said I had a book about Xi Jinping’s governance of China. They said it was against the rules.”
Police said three men and two women, aged between 27 and 88, were taken to police stations for investigation after they allegedly breached the peace. They were all released afterwards.Swiss photographer Marc Progin and a woman were taken aside by police near SOGO at around 8.40 pm on Tuesday before being put into a police vehicle. He told HKFP on Wednesday that police said they were unable to check Progin and a friend’s identification documents while they were surrounded by the press, and thus the pair was escorted into the vehicle.
Progin and his friend were sent to to Wan Chai police headquarters after officers said they could not release them at the scene with “such a mess around.” The duo were interviewed and searched at the police station and were later released at around 11 pm.
On Monday night, artist Sanmu Chan was stopped, questioned and taken away by police in Causeway Bay on the eve of the Tiananmen crackdown anniversary, as he sought to partake in some performance art. He was later released without being arrested.
Separate to the 2020 Beijing-enacted security law, the homegrown Safeguarding National Security Ordinance targets treason, insurrection, sabotage, external interference, sedition, theft of state secrets and espionage. It allows for pre-charge detention of to up to 16 days, and suspects’ access to lawyers may be restricted, with penalties involving up to life in prison. Article 23 was shelved in 2003 amid mass protests, remaining taboo for years. But, on March 23, 2024, it was enacted having been fast-tracked and unanimously approved at the city’s opposition-free legislature.
The law has been criticised by rights NGOs, Western states and the UN as vague, broad and “regressive.” Authorities, however, cited perceived foreign interference and a constitutional duty to “close loopholes” after the 2019 protests and unrest.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jun 3, 2024
- Event Description
A controversy erupted in Chhattisgarh on Monday after the state police arrested a 25-year-old woman who advocates for the rights of tribal, provoking howls of protests from the human rights groups that accused the police of framing her in fake cases to silence her.
Bastar range inspector general of police (IGP) Sunderaj P said Suneeta Pottam was wanted in 12 cases linked to Maoist activities and was arrested from Raipur.
“Suneeta Pottam (25) was held by a team of Bijapur police from Raipur, where she was living under an assumed name and identity. She is a resident of Korcholi village under the Gangaloor police station area in Bijapur and is a key operative of the Maoists’ urban network and frontal organisation. At least 12 warrants are pending against Potam in three different police stations in Bijapur for offences related to murder, attempt to murder, loot, provocative speeches and causing damage to government property,” Sunderaj said.
Bijapur superintendent of police Jitendra Yadav said seven of the 12 cases against Suneeta Pottam were registered at Gangaloor police station. Four cases are registered at Mirtur police station and one at Bijapur police station.
She was produced before a local court and remanded in judicial custody, police said.
The Chhattisgarh unit of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) rebutted the police claim, insisting that Pottam was a “tribal activist and a human rights defender” and “an active member of PUCL Chhattisgarh and of national women’s organization WSS (Women against Sexual Violence and State Repression) since 2015”.
The statement said Suneeta Pottam was staying with colleagues of a women’s collective to prepare for an examination when the police turned up. “In the most shocking way, the other two colleagues were pushed inside the room and bolted from outside before the Deputy Superintendent of Police took Pottam in an unregistered vehicle without number plates threatening the landlady not to open the door. In less than half an hour, the DSP returned to flash the warrant against Pottam, refusing to give a copy to her colleagues and PUCL member Shreya Khemani who reached the place after hearing the news,” the statement alleged.
Mary Lawlor, a United Nations Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, said Suneeta Pottam’s arrest was “seemingly as a result of her peaceful advocacy” for the protection of tribal rights and against systemic violations. “She should be released immediately @IndiaUNGeneva,” she said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
PUCL also said she was arrested in violation of the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in the DK Basu case, adding that no memo of arrest was prepared or attested by family, friends and neighbours.
In 2016, Pottam petitioned the Chhattisgarh high court over the alleged extra-judicial killings of six persons in Kadenar, Palnar, Korcholi and Andri villages of Bijapur district, it said.
“At the local level she has been leading ongoing protests against the widening of roads piercing through several villages, cutting hundreds of fruit-bearing trees without holding any gram sabha in complete violation of the PESA Act,” the PUCL statement said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jun 1, 2024
- Event Description
Vietnamese authorities must reveal the whereabouts of independent journalist Truong Huy San, release him, and drop any pending charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
San, a well-known political commentator and author also known by his pen names Huy Duc and Osin, was apprehended by the police on June 1 in the capital Hanoi while traveling to an event where he was scheduled to speak, and his home was also searched, according to multiple news reports.
San’s family had no news about his location or legal status, the BBC reported on June 4. CPJ has received no new information as of Thursday.
“Vietnamese authorities should immediately disclose where they are holding journalist Truong Huy San and release him unconditionally,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “Vietnam must stop treating journalists like criminals and release all members of the press wrongfully held behind bars.”
Days before his arrest, San wrote critical commentary about Vietnamese politics on his Facebook page, which was shut down on June 2 for unknown reasons, those sources said.
In his posts, San wrote about two of Vietnam’s top leaders — the ruling Communist Party’s long-serving chief Nguyen Phu Trong and President To Lam, who was appointed on May 22 after being nominated by the party, the BBC said.
In his post to his 350,000 followers, San argued that Vietnam’s development could not be based on fear and noted Lam’s long-time role as Minister of Public Security.
Lam is widely seen as a contender to replace 80-year-old Trong in the top political position when his third five-year term ends in 2026.
San wrote about corruption and political reform for leading newspapers and published a popular blog before receiving a Nieman Fellowship to study at Harvard University in 2012 and 2013.
Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security, which manages the nation’s prisons and authorizes police to make political arrests, did not immediately respond to CPJ’s emailed request for comment.
Vietnam was the fifth worst jailer of journalists worldwide, with at least 19 reporters behind bars on December 1, 2023, in CPJ’s latest annual global prison census.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Malaysia
- Initial Date
- May 31, 2024
- Event Description
The magistrates’ court here today ordered former student activist Wong Yan Ke to stand trial for the charge of disobeying a police order to stop recording a Facebook live video during a raid four years ago.
Magistrate Shahril Anuar Ahmad Mustapa dismissed Wong’s application to strike out his charge under Section 188 of the Penal Code.
However, the court did not provide the grounds for the decision.
Previously, Wong’s lawyers told the court that the charge was groundless, and did not disclose any offence.
Shahril also fixed June 26 and 27 for the trial to commence.
Wong, currently the Bersih deputy chairman, was charged with disobeying police officer Lee Robert’s order to stop broadcasting a Facebook live video during a raid at the home of former Universiti Malaya Association of New Youth (Umany) president Yap Wen Qing in 2020.
Wong, who was also Umany president, was granted a discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) last year after witnesses did not turn up for the trial.
However, this was subsequently set aside by the High Court, and Wong was ordered to stand trial.
Wong told reporters after today’s proceedings that he will fight the charge and prove his innocence.
He was represented by lawyers Shashi Devan and Chong Kar Yan, while deputy public prosecutor Asmaa Zamri appeared for the prosecution.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Malaysia: former student leader fined over 2019 protest
- Country
- Singapore
- Initial Date
- May 31, 2024
- Event Description
On 31 May 2024, human rights defender and lawyer M. Ravi was struck off from the roll of advocates and solicitors, ordered by the High Court of Singapore.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to work
- HRD
- Lawyer
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- May 30, 2024
- Event Description
A Hong Kong court found 14 of the city’s leading democracy activists guilty of subversion on Thursday under a tough national security law imposed on the city by China four years ago in what was described by one former lawmaker as a 'political trial.'
The city's High Court acquitted two of the 16 defendants, but the city's Department of Justice said it would appeal those verdicts.
The 118-day trial is the biggest ever prosecution of pro-democracy politicians and activists in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 amid promises that it would keep the freedoms that once ensured its status as an international financial hub.
The mass arrest of 47 lawmakers, grass-roots activists and election hopefuls from Hong Kong’s now-defunct pro-democracy parties drew international condemnation in 2021.
Sixteen of the 47 defendants went on trial after pleading not guilty to the charge of "conspiracy to commit subversion," which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. The other 31 defendants have already pleaded guilty to the charge, and are currently awaiting sentencing along with the rest.
The charges are based on their participation in a democratic primary election in the summer of 2020, in which some 600,000 Hong Kongers turned out to vote.
But the scheduled general election was eventually postponed while the government rewrote the rules to ensure that pro-democracy candidates wouldn't be allowed to run in future elections.
The government claims the pro-democracy camp planned to subvert its power by blocking passage of its budget through the city's Legislative Council.
Former lawmakers Leung Kwok-hung, known as "Long Hair," Lam Cheuk-ting, Helena Wong and Raymond Chan were among the 14 found guilty by three government-appointed judges and no jury.
Journalist-turned-politician Gwyneth Ho and the head of the hospital workers' union Winnie Yu were also convicted.
The panel of national security judges said the two acquitted defendants, Lee Yue-shun and Lawrence Lau, should be released on bail and report to the police every month. The Department of Justice said later on Thursday that it would appeal those verdicts.
Justice Andrew Chan set June 25 as a tentative date for the court to hear mitigating arguments from those convicted, prior to sentencing.
‘Serious criminal scheme’
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said the convictions showed "the scale and the seriousness of their criminal scheme."
He said the Department of Justice had already informed the court of its intention to appeal in the case of the two acquittals.
"[The Hong Kong government] ... will do our utmost to prevent, suppress and impose punishment for acts and activities endangering national security to fulfill this justified responsibility," Lee said in a statement after the verdicts.
But former pro-democracy lawmaker Ted Hui, who fled the city amid the ongoing crackdown on dissent, and who is now living in Australia, said the trial of the 47 was effectively "a political trial."
"This has been a political trial from start to finish," Hui told RFA Mandarin on Thursday. "They are arbitrarily finding excuses to convict them to meet political needs."
"The playbook here is that the Chinese government believes it necessary to round up all democrats and convict them," said Hui, who is also a lawyer.
"The judges are merely executing the script, by finding some pretty far-fetched legal reasoning and evidence to support the idea that the democrats were trying to overthrow the regime," he said.
Australia-based lawyer and rights activist Kevin Yam said the court's interpretation and definition of what constitutes "subversion" will likely set a precedent for future cases under the 2020 National Security Law, but that the verdicts made no sense when considered alongside protection for economic, civil and political rights enshrined in the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law.
"What's wrong with legislators exercising their constitutional power to veto the budget?" Yam said. "The most terrifying thing about this is the fact that exercising your constitutional powers can be construed as a criminal offense."
"That's a precedent that will bring all kinds of trouble in its wake," he said. "Anyone exercising their civil rights can be deemed to be breaking the law, which means that the National Security Law can be infinitely magnified [to include anything]."
‘Bulldozing freedoms’
In Washington, the Congressional Executive Commission on China, or CECC, accused the Hong Kong government of violating its international law and treaty obligations, and "bulldozing the freedoms and rule of law that once made it so vital and prosperous."
"These verdicts are yet another sign that the Chinese Communist Party is pulling the strings, as its extreme efforts to restrict democracy and human rights now dictate Hong Kong’s political and judicial institutions," Rep. Chris Smith, who chairs the commission, and Sen. Jeff Merkley said in a statement on Thursday.
The commission called for the Biden administration to sanction the judges and prosecutors responsible for what it termed "political prosecutions" and to shut down the city's Economic and Trade Offices on American soil.
Amnesty International’s China Director Sarah Brooks called the mass conviction “the most ruthless illustration yet of how Hong Kong’s National Security Law is weaponized to silence dissent.”
She called on the international community to join Amnesty in demanding the immediate and unconditional release of the activists.
“To imprison these men and women, having already kept most of the 47 in pre-trial detention for more than three years, is a brazen injustice.
“None of those convicted have committed an internationally recognized crime; they have been targeted simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and participation in public affairs,” she said.
‘Hostile foreign forces’
Meanwhile, a government spokesman accused unidentified "external forces" of smearing the government, the police and the courts during the trial, and of trying to interfere with the trial "through intimidatory political means and misleading remarks."
Hong Kong and Chinese officials have long blamed "hostile foreign forces" for inciting several waves of mass popular protest in Hong Kong, including the 2019 protests for fully democratic elections and greater official accountability.
The verdicts show that Hong Kong is "no longer a safe place for international business,” said Benedict Rogers, chief executive officer of the London-based rights group Hong Kong Watch.
He said the prosecution had presented "bogus evidence," and that the British government should reevaluate Hong Kong's overseas privileges and expand its lifeboat British National Overseas, or BNO, visa program to help people flee the ongoing crackdown, which was recently expanded with a second national security law, known as Article 23.
According to the overseas-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, the sentences that are eventually handed down will depend on the defendants' alleged role in the primary election.
“Ringleaders” could get 10 years to life, "active participants" 3-10 years and other participants less than three years, the group said via its X account, calling on the authorities to “free all political prisoners.”
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said her government was “deeply concerned” by the verdicts, including that for one Australian citizen among them, Gordon Ng.
“Australia has expressed our strong objections to the Hong Kong authorities on the continuing broad application of national security legislation to arrest and pressure pro-democracy figures, opposition groups, media, trade unions and civil society.
“We know that the application of these laws also has implications for individuals outside of Hong Kong, including in Australia,” she said in a statement.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to political participation
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- May 30, 2024
- Event Description
On May 29, an unknown number of unidentified gunmen on three motorbikes stopped Mastoi, a reporter for Sindh News TV and Times News media outlets, and shot him four times while he was on his way home in Rohri town, located in Pakistan’s Sukkur District, according to press freedom nonprofit the Pakistan Press Foundation and the independent daily Dawn. The armed men also beat Pitafi, a cameraman accompanying Mastoi during the attack, according to the Pakistan Press Foundation.
On May 30, armed men on two motorbikes shot Ikhlaq while he was returning to his native town Bewal from Gujar Khan city in Punjab province, according to media reports. The independent daily newspaper Nation reported that Ikhlaq is a correspondent for the Daily Express and a member of the Bewal Khan Press Club.
“Pakistani authorities must swiftly investigate the attacks on journalists Haider Mastoi, Chaudhry Ikhlaq, and Khan Muhammad Pitafi, and hold the perpetrators to account,” said Beh Lih Yi, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator. “Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government must stop this alarming rise in attacks against journalists, and end this cycle of impunity that fuels a culture of violence against Pakistan media.”
Pakistan remains politically volatile after a February election—marred by campaign violence and widely described as flawed—led to the formation of a coalition government.
Although the motive behind the attacks on the journalists remains unclear, media reports indicated that Ikhlaq had received death threats from local influential individuals for his critical coverage of Pakistani nationals who have left the country.
According to reports, Mastoi and Ikhlaq are in stable condition and are recovering in the hospital.
Sukkur police have detained an unidentified number of suspects in connection with the attack on Mastoi, according to Rauf Abbasi, a local journalist in Sukkur, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app.
Earlier in May, four journalists were killed in separate incidents in Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. CPJ is investigating whether the journalists were killed in retaliation for their reporting.
Police in Sindh and Punjab provinces did not respond to CPJ’s emailed request for comment about the attacks on Mastoi and Ikhlaq.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- May 28, 2024
- Event Description
Facebook Logo Twitter Logo May 28, 2024 Hong Kong: Arrests under new national security law a ‘shameful attempt’ at suppressing peaceful commemoration of Tiananmen crackdown Responding to the police’s first use of the recently adopted “Article 23” legislation (Safeguarding National Security Ordinance) to arrest six people, including human rights activist Chow Hang-tung, for alleged sedition crimes, Amnesty International’s China director Sarah Brooks said:
“The Hong Kong government has once again moved to suppress freedom of expression as it attempts to stop people remembering the horrific events of 4 June 1989.
“Chow Hang-tung’s 1000th day in detention on national security charges is next week – on 4 June, no less – and the authorities seem intent on ensuring that her fight for freedom is even longer by adding new so-called crimes to her file.
“Despite warnings from UN human rights experts that the law is inconsistent with international human rights laws and standards, the Hong Kong government insists on weaponizing it to silence critique.
“The government’s shameful attempt to prohibit people from marking the upcoming anniversary is an insult to those killed in the Tiananmen crackdown and their family members.
“Chow Hang-tung and others in Hong Kong arrested simply for exercising the right to freedom of expression should be immediately and unconditionally released, and the Hong Kong police must refrain from suppressing other peaceful commemorations of the 1989 tragedy. Remembering the Tiananmen crackdown is not and never shall be a crime.”
Background Five women and one man were arrested today for allegedly committing offences in connection with seditious intention under section 24 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (i.e. Article 23 legislation).
A government press release stated that the arrests are related to social media posts commemorating “a sensitive day” (referring to 4 June, the anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown). Media and civil society groups reported that detained activist Chow Hang-tung and her mother were among the six arrested.
Hundreds – possibly thousands – of people were killed in and around Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on 4 June 1989 when Chinese troops opened fire on students and workers who had been peacefully calling for political and economic reforms as well as an end to corruption. For thirty years, Hong Kong hosted the largest vigil in the world to commemorate those who stood up for freedom, and those who lost their lives, in June 1989.
Hong Kong’s Legislative Council unanimously voted on 19 March 2024 to pass the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance under Article 23 of the Basic Law, Hong Kong’s mini-constitution. The Ordinance increases penalties for acts relating to sedition and contains many troubling provisions, such as the vague and broadly worded crime of ‘external interference’ as well as an attack on the right to a fair trial.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Family of HRD, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- May 28, 2024
- Event Description
Ambassador of People’s Republic of China to Nepal intimidated a noted journalist in a conversation through his post on X (twitter).
Chief editor at https://taksarnews.com/ Gajendra Budhathoki wrote a post on X on May 27 about interest rate for loan from the Chinese government for construction of Pokhara International Airport, Pokhara.
On the post, Ambassador Chen Song accused Budhathoki of posting the worst lie and challenged him to furnish clarification over his post with proof on May 28. Again on May 29 early morning, the ambassador replied in the same thread, “We demand a formal apology from you and whoever people you represent.”
In response to this thread, Budhathoki replied that he would publish the information in detail soon and that his post was based on official documents from the Nepal Government.
To this, Freedom Forum’s Chief Executive Taranath Dahal observed, “It is quite strange that a foreign ambassador wants apology from a noted investigative journalist over a social media post in the host country. He could disagree with journalist’s point. Such intimidation is deplorable.”
Freedom Forum condemns the ambassador’s behavior towards a journalist on the twitter. His replies to the journalist’s post is against the diplomatic etiquette and a sheer violation freedom of expression. Being a diplomat, the ambassador should cooperate with journalist to publish the credible information rather than intimidation.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 28, 2024
- Event Description
Trieu Sieu, 35, an indigenous Khmer Krom resident in Tran De District, Soc Trang Province, learned that the Immigration Department of Soc Trang Provincial Police refused to issue him a passport because he is currently on the travel ban list. The official notice, No. 377/XNC, issued by the immigration department, stated that Sieu’s travel ban is effective between August 1, 2023, and August 1, 2026. It did not specifically say why the Khmer Krom resident is banned from traveling abroad.
A relative of Sieu, who declined to be named due to security concerns, Sieu was banned from leaving the country because he advocated on May 28 that the only reason why Sieu was banned from leaving the country was because of his advocating for the rights of the local Khmer Krom people. According to the relative, Sieu had distributed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, along with other activities to promote the rights of the Khmer Krom populations.
Sieu also used his social media account to denounce the authorities’ suppression of the rights of the Khmer Krom people, especially their religious freedom and land rights. RFA reported that in January 2023, the Trung Binh Commune Police, where he lived, summoned Sieu to an interrogation regarding his posting on social media. During that session, the police reportedly questioned him on his sharing of allegations about state repression of the Khmer Krom people.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Restrictions on Movement, Travel Restriction
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- May 28, 2024
- Event Description
A group of civil activists gathered in front of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna office at Nelum Mawatha, Battaramulla for a protest.
Their protest centered around the contention that the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna lacks the mandate to endorse bills affecting the country.
Among the activists present was Jamuni Kamantha Thushara, who had participated in the signing of an agreement known as “One Agenda for the Nation” in Colombo yesterday afternoon.
This morning, they assembled outside the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna head office to protest.
Security measures were heightened, with police and anti-riot teams stationed at the party headquarters. However, civil activists were denied entry.
Additionally, Dan Priyasad, a civil organization activist, attempted to reach the protest site from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party headquarters.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Bangladesh
- Initial Date
- May 27, 2024
- Event Description
In a separate incident, journalist Enamul Haque, a local correspondent of Dainik Kalbela in Islampur was stabbed while investigating the stocking practices of the Asad Dali Rice Mill, meant to feed people in need under the Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) programme.
Haque was accompanied by three local journalists on this assignment, and shortly after arrival, they entered into a confrontation with the mill’s owner. Haque was stabbed by the owner of the mill, and transported to receive medical care at the Jamalpur General Hospital. by police. No cases have been filed in relation to the attack, with the mill owner believed to be in hiding.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- May 27, 2024
- Event Description
Two activists have been sentenced to prison on a royal defamation charge for allegedly burning a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn in front of the Klongprem Central Prison. They were later released on bail pending appeal.
Chaiamorn ‘Ammy’ Kaewwiboonpan, a pop singer-turned-activist, and Thanapat Kapeng, an activist from the Thalufah group, were charged with royal defamation and arson for allegedly setting fire to a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn on 28 February 2021. Chaiamorn was also charged with violation of the Computer Crimes Act for posting on Facebook a picture of the burning portrait with the caption “The media wouldn’t dare report this. A friend said that, last night, a royal portrait was torched in front of the Klongprem Prison. Give this post a ‘share’ for freedom. #Freeourfriends.”
Chaiamorn was arrested on 3 March 2021. He was subsequently denied bail and detained for 69 days before being released on bail. Thanapat was later summoned to report to the police.
After his indictment, Thanapat’s lawyer requested that his case be transferred to the Central Juvenile and Family Court, since he was only 18 years old at the time of the incident. The request was denied on the grounds that he was no longer a minor and was of normal physical and mental condition for his age.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said yesterday (27 May) that the Criminal Court found Chaiamorn and Thanapat guilty of all charges. Chaiamorn was sentenced to 4 years in prison, while Thanapat was sentenced to 1 year.
Noting that the two activists claimed they did not intend to defame the King, the Court ruled that setting fire to a royal portrait as a symbolic act of protest to demand release of political prisoners implied that they would burn or destroy the King himself if their demands were not met - a threat to the King and devaluation of the institution.
The Court also ruled that, by posting a picture of the burning portrait on a public Facebook profile, Chaiamorn aimed to damage the King’s reputation.
Chaiamorn and Thanapat were later granted bail pending appeal on a security of 200,000 baht and 50,000 baht respectively.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Online
- HRD
- Artist, Pro-democracy defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- May 27, 2024
- Event Description
A progressive Move Forward Party MP, Chonthicha Jangrew, has been sentenced to three years in prison for royal defamation over a protest speech in 2021. The sentence was later reduced to two years in prison without parole.
The court ruled that Chonthicha Jangrew, also known as “Lookkate”, was guilty under the royal defamation law for her speech during a 2021 protest in front of the Thanyaburi Provincial Court. The protest was staged to demand the release of political detainees. The MP revealed that another nine defendants in this case were charged under the Emergency Decree and the Sound Amplifier Act for using a loudhailer without permission. These nine defendants were later acquitted.
Chonthicha was the only one who was charged under the royal defamation law over her speech about the laws concerning crown property management and royal service administration that were amended during the tenure of former PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. She asserted that the speech was delivered with good intentions.
In her speech, she criticized the then-Prime Minister’s amendments to the laws, which gave King Vajiralongkorn more power to monopolise royal assets. The judges stated that her speech could lead to misunderstanding by suggesting that the King intentionally spent taxpayers’ money for his personal use and exercised his power to interfere with the state administration.
Initially sentenced to three years in prison, her sentence was reduced to two years in prison without parole due to her useful testimony. The court allowed provisional bail, and the MP will appeal the verdict.
This is Chonthicha’s second case as she also faces another royal defamation charge for posting a message to King Vajiralongkorn during a November 2020 protest. That case is currently at the stage of witness examination.
Before entering politics, Chonthicha was a prominent pro-democracy activist after the 2014 coup, when she was a university student. She was among those who were arrested and detained for 12 days in 2015 for sedition and illegal assembly for staging a protest to mark the first anniversary of the 2014 coup.
The court’s verdict came a few days after Chonthicha was named among Time’s Next Generation Leaders 2024.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 27, 2024
- Event Description
Authorities in southern Vietnam have stepped-up harassment of activists from the ethnic Cambodian Khmer Krom community who are trying to promote the rights of the indigenous people, according to representatives.
Nearly 1.3 million Khmer Krom live in the south. They face serious restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly, movement and religion, community members say.
Relatives of a 35-year-old Khmer Krom activist called Trieu Sieu told Radio Free Asia the Immigration Management Department of Soc Trang provincial police refused to issue a passport to him.
The deputy head of the department, Lt. Col. Thanh Hoa, said in a letter on May 24 that Trieu Sieu is banned from leaving the country between Aug. 1, 2023 and Aug. 1, 2026.
He said Trieu Sieu could not get a passport until he was removed from an exit ban list.
“The only reason Trieu Sieu is banned from leaving the country is due to his activities fighting for the rights of the local Khmer people,” said a relative who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
“He participated in disseminating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples along with many other human rights activists,” the relative said.
At the end of January 2023, Trieu Sieu was invited to Trung Binh Commune Police to discuss "a number of issues related to online activities on Facebook when sharing information about repression of the Khmer people.”
On a Facebook page of Hieu Khmer Krom, believed to linked to Trieu Sieu, there is a picture of him standing with activist Danh Minh Quang, who was sentenced to three years and six months in prison in February on a charge of "abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on the interests of the State, the legitimate rights and interests of organizations and individuals."
RFA Vietnamese contacted Trieu Sieu to ask for more information, but he declined to comment saying that he was preparing to send a complaint to Soc Trang provincial police department to ask why he was banned from leaving the country.
The Soc Trang provincial police department and the Immigration Management Department declined to answer questions about Trieu Sieu's case over the telephone, saying the reporter should go to the agencies’ headquarters to get information.
Article 36 of the Law on Exit and Entry of Vietnamese Citizens 2019 states that cases of delayed exit include people who have grounds to believe that their exit affects national defense and security, or are suspects, defendants, accused persons, or persons recommended for prosecution through inspection and verification. If there are grounds to determine that a person is suspected of committing a crime and it is deemed necessary to immediately prevent that person from escaping or destroying evidence according to the provisions of the 2015 Criminal Procedure Code they will be prevented from leaving the country.
Vietnam denies accusations from international human rights groups that it represses religious freedoms and other rights. Freedom of religion is technically enshrined in the constitution but critics say authorities often override rights, including religious freedom, for purposes of national security, social order, social morality and community well-being.
Monk expelled from temple
Another case involves a Buddhist monk called Kim Som Rinh.
On March 26, the Giac Ngo Online newspaper reported that the Patriotic Monks Solidarity Association of the Khmer-Mekone Buddhist Association of Tra Vinh province had decided not to recognize Bhikkhu Kim Som Rinh as a member of the Sangha Chac A Kron Pagoda (Dai Tuong Pagoda); did not recognize him as a member of the Khmer Theravada Buddhist Sangha of Tra Vinh province and expelled him from the temple on March 14. They also asked all 143 Khmer pagodas in the province to refuse to accept him.
The Buddhist group said Kim Som Rinh refused three times to accept an invitation from the Patriotic Monks' Solidarity Association of Tra Vinh province; posted or shared untrue images and videos on social networking sites with content that caused insecurity and threatened social order; invited monks and Buddhists to participate in his own activities causes disunity in the temple and the community; and is a Bhikkhu – or ordained monk – who is difficult to teach, stubborn and does not comply with the canon law and teachings of the abbot and leaders at all levels of the association.
Kim Som Rinh, now living with his family, confirmed that he was forced to leave the temple. He said it was because he promoted human rights and spoke in support of the victims of miscarriages of justice, including Khmers whose land was confiscated in Kien Giang.
“They do not want the monks and activists here to speak about indigenous peoples,” he told RFA Vietnamese.
“They also don't want us to use the words ‘Khmer Krom and the tricolor flag representing the Khmer Krom Federation,” Kampuchea-Krom Khmers Federation or KKF.
“They accuse Khmer activists of many things, and often summon them just because of disseminating the United Nations human rights law and indigenous people's law. They often accuse activists of distorting the truth and disrupting security and order."
Police summon Khmer Krom
On May 27, Cau Ke district police summoned 34-year-old Thach Nga to come to the headquarters to work on issues "related to the use of the organization's 3-color flag … and posting and sharing false information on social networks."
Three days earlier, Ham Giang commune police sent a fourth letter to Thach Thi Huynh Thone to request her to come to the agency's headquarters the next morning to "discuss about carrying the KKF flag.”
And on May 15, Nhi Truong commune police summoned Thach Pho Reng on "some issues related to social networks."
Even though it was just an "invitation," the commune police chief told Thach Pho Reng "to strictly comply and go on the prescribed date, time, and location, without making any excuse for his absence."
The commune's police also summoned 37-year-old Thach Yen Sa Ray, concerning social media posts.
RFA telephoned the police in those communes to verify the details but officials asked the reporter to meet them directly to receive the information.
Tran Xa Rong, second vice president of the KKF, told RFA that more Khmer Krom people had been learning about human rights and the rights of indigenous people, so they distributed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations International Convention on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in their communities.
“The local police always monitor and harass every meeting of young people, and every celebration of every temple, and from then on, any young people who have any insight in that matter are always summoned for questioning," he said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Minority Rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 27, 2024
- Event Description
There is a strong suspicion that there is an attempt to criminalize plasma farmers who are members of the Kuala Tunak KUD in Tabuyung Village, Muara Batang Girls District, Mandailing Natal (Madina) Regency.
This was explained by the Chairman of KUD Kuala Tunak, Wardan Batubara via a WA message received by Waspada.id, Monday (27/5).
Wardan explained that the criminalization was allegedly carried out by the Management of PT Sawit Sukses Sejati (PT. SSS). KUD Kuala Tunak plasma farmers concluded that they were criminalized after hundreds of plasma participating farmers came to the South Madina Plantation Office (KMS) to ask directly for surplus plasma plantation products from PT SSS Management.
They went directly to PT. SSS because the management and supervisors have made maximum efforts, both verbally and in writing so that PT. SSS as the adoptive father in managing plasma plantations will pay a surplus at the end of 2023 worth IDR 2.8 billion to plasma participating farmers. Three months of efforts were made but did not produce results.
"We have made efforts since January 2024, both in writing and orally, conveyed in several meetings with PT Management. SSS requested that the 2023 surplus be paid to members, but the adoptive father (PT. SSS) did not want to pay it. Then, we held a meeting with plasma members, the decision at the meeting was for all members to request the surplus directly from PT Management. SSS," said Wardan Batubara, Chairman of KUD Kuala Tunak.
Wardan Batubara further explained, on March 20 2024, hundreds of members accompanied by Kuala Tunak KUD Management and Supervisors went to the KMS plantation office, the members directly asked for their rights, namely a surplus of IDR 2.8 billion, from PT Management. SSS. However, the answer received by a member from the Group Manager named Ramsi, was not accepted by the company, and the company instead invited members to manage their own plantations.
GM PT's answer. The SSS makes the members emotional and quarrels occur even though they can still be controlled. At that time, the members remained at the location until evening and there was an incident where the window of the meeting room was thrown, the perpetrator of which was not known because it was dark, there was no lighting, and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of breaking glass.
This incident of the garden office window being thrown is what is strongly suspected to have been caused by PT Management. SSS to criminalize Kuala Tunak KUD Management, Supervisors and Members as plasma farmer participants.
This can be proven by the actions of PT. SSS, through Rico Yustanto, has made a report to the Mandailing Natal Police with the reporter, Heri Risnandar as Public Relations and Iswayudi Arabia as Security, with Police Report Number: LP/B/78/III/2024/SPKT/Mandiling Natal Police/North Sumatra Police. A total of 14 administrators, supervisors and members of the Kualo Tunak KUD will respond to the summons from the Mandailing Natal Police on Monday and Tuesday, 27/28 May 2024 regarding this incident.
"We have received the summons from the Madina Police and we will attend at the appointed time. We believe that what the members have done is the truth to demand their rights and we also ask that PT SSS be held accountable for what they have done in managing the community plasma plantation, it is a mandate." said Wardan Batubara.
Meanwhile, Sakwan Lubis, Chief Supervisor of KUD Kuala Tunak, who was contacted via cellphone, said that PT. The SSS should be suspected of embezzling plasma farmer funds because to date, the 2023 plasma plantation surplus of IDR 2.8 billion has not been distributed to members. Sakwan hopes that the Mandailing Natal Regency Government will not remain silent on this issue, as civil servants and public servants they should not allow society to be criminalized by unscrupulous business people.
Sakwan Lubis also explained, PT. SSS as the adoptive father in the management of plasma plantations never involves KUD. Kuala Tunak as the plantation owner makes plans for plantation management costs and their realization, whether annually, monthly or even weekly. But suddenly, at the beginning of 2023 the management of PT. SSS delivers KUD. Kuala Tunak is in minus condition and has a debt of IDR 8.3 billion. This condition makes KUD Kuala Tunak question what kind of management is carried out by PT. SSS in managing the garden seems unprofessional. The reason is because the plasma farmers have handed over the management of the plantation to PT. SSS is considered an expert and professional in managing oil palm plantations, but the facts on the ground are different. It should be PT. SSS can plan and predict what costs and profits will be as well as what obstacles will be faced.
KUD party. Kuala Tunak is currently conducting an investigation to prove this, if proven it will bring the matter into the realm of law.
Madina Police Chief. AKBP Arie Sopandi Paloh, S.Ik confirmed via WA message, until this news was sent there had been no reply.
- Impact of Event
- 14
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Agricultural business
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- May 26, 2024
- Event Description
Anti-coup protesters said they were shot at by soldiers in Hlaing Township on May 26. A group called Yangon UG said three of its members hung a banner that read: “Only justice will win” from an overpass and burned a copy of the 2008 constitution. The protesters said they all escaped from the gunfire unharmed and evaded arrest.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- May 24, 2024
- Event Description
The Jalal-Abad City Court in southern Kyrgyzstan told RFE/RL on May 27 that independent journalist Ali Ergeshev was fined 70,000 soms ($795) on a hooliganism charge three days earlier. Ergeshev was detained on February 13 and placed under house arrest. His detention came just before Kyrgyz lawmakers approved a controversial bill allowing authorities to register media outlets and NGOs as "foreign representatives" in a way that critics say mirrors repressive Russian legislation that the authorities there have used to discredit its critics and stifle civil society. Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov signed the bill into law in early April.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Kyrgyzstan: media worker confined to house arrest
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 23, 2024
- Event Description
An appellate court in Tra Vinh Province on May 23 rejected the appeals of Thach Cuong, 37, and To Hoang Chuong, 38, two activists who have campaigned for the rights to freedom of religion of the indigenous Khmer Krom population living in the southwestern part of Vietnam.
In a first-instance trial on March 20, Cuong was sentenced to four years, and Chuong received three years and six months in prison. Both were charged with violating Article 331 of the Penal Code, which forbids “abusing democratic freedom to infringe on the state and other individuals' interests.”
The People’s Police Newspaper, a mouthpiece of the Ministry of Public Security, reported that Thach Cuong was arrested because he “had regular interactions with overseas reactionary organizations and individuals through social networking platforms from 2021 until he was detained on July 31, 2023.”
At the same time, it added, Cuong had “posted, live streamed, and published 14 videos that reflect false facts and affect national and religious solidarity in Vietnam.” Meanwhile, Chuong was accused of sharing the information published by Thach Cuong and several foreign websites that “distorted” the religious situation in Vietnam.
According to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Thach Cuong and To Hoang Chuong became targets of the government’s persecution because of their advocacy for the Khmer Krom religious adherents to practice their religion and beliefs without state interference. The USCIRF noted that the police had temporarily detained and assaulted Chuong when he visited another Khmer Krom activist in Soc Trang Province in June 2023.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- May 22, 2024
- Event Description
Journalists associated with different online news media were manhandled while reporting on May 22 in Kathmandu.
Journalists were Krishna Kattel and Navraj Pahadi from https://www.hareknews.com/, Sudeep Bhandari from https://pathibharachannel.com/, Pushkar Bhandari from https://www.rightsanchar.com/ were manhandled while reporting on footpath expansion in New Road.
According to Kattel, the locals were protesting against the Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s order to expand footpath at New Road area.
“After we reached there to report on the KMC’s order and locals views, few local people pushed us out of the premises. They also kicked one of the journalists and tried to seize our reporting devices but the on-duty police officers helped us leave the site safely”, journalist Kattel shared.
Ward chair apologizes Thereafter, as journalists tried to report the incident at a nearby police station, ward chairperson Chin Kaki Maharjan apologized to them on behalf of the protestors and ensured that such incident will not repeat in future.
“It seems the attack was targeted against me as I have been reporting on the issues surrounding the place. I have also learned that a social campaign along with my photo has been started to ban my entry to New Road area. But this does not stop my work”, Kattel said.
Freedom Forum is concerned towards the intimidation upon journalists. It is a sheer violation of press freedom. Journalists reporting on protest and public issues must not be targeted. The security authority is urged to ensure security of journalists while report in the premises, while locals must cooperate with journalists for reporting in public spaces.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2024
- Event Description
Police on Tuesday arrested Kantipur Media Group Chairman Kailash Sirohiya.
A police team, including Senior Superintendent of Police Sanuram Bhattarai and Superintendent of Police Rabindra Regmi of Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office, arrested Sirohiya from the Thapathali-based central office of the media group.
Police arrested Sirohiya without questioning him on a complaint filed at the Dhanusha District Police Office.
The arrest follows a series of news reports carried out by KMG’s outlets on the cooperative scam. Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane is accused of misappropriating millions of rupees deposited in various cooperatives in several cities.
Talking to the media briefly after his arrest, Sirohiya said the government showed authoritarian characteristics [by arresting him] despite his willingness to assist in the investigation.
Sirohiya also described his arrest as a blow to press freedom. “This is an assault on press freedom, and I will fight until the end,” he said.
Earlier today, Sirohiya said he was ready to cooperate in every investigation conducted as per the law.
In a statement, Sirohiya said the arrest warrant was issued to blackmail Kantipur daily into not publishing more reports on cooperative frauds.
“It is the media’s responsibility to raise voice and demand justice and fair investigation into all those involved in the embezzlement of the hard-earned savings of more than 7.1 million depositors in various cooperatives,” Sirohiya said. “There is no doubt that the filing of the complaint and the issuance of the arrest warrant against me without any interrogation has been done to blackmail Kantipur into not publishing more reports on the issue and to divert attention.”
Sirohiya asserted that Kantipur will not back down even an inch from raising its voice against the wrongdoings in the society, including on the cooperatives scam.
“The office bearers who abuse their authority and misuse police administration to exact vengeance against the chairman of a media house based on the news they publish should also answer when there will be an investigation into the individual who came to power through political bargaining that entailed getting the Attorney General to certify that he would not be prosecuted for holding dual passports,” Sirohiya said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2024
- Event Description
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Pakistani authorities to shed all possible light on an independent reporter’s murder in North Waziristan, a mountainous district bordering Afghanistan, on 21 May, just weeks after he voiced fears for his safety. Those responsible must be brought to justice, RSF says.
An independent online reporter aged in his 30s, Kamran Dawar was slain by unidentified gunmen outside his home in Tappi, a village 15 km south of Miranshah, the chief town in the North Waziristan district, which is located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“It was a targeted murder,” Miranshah-based police officer Rukhan Zeb Khan told RSF’s Pakistan representative, when reached by telephone.
Dawar ran a YouTube channel and a Facebook TV news channel called Waziristan TV in which he covered the social problems that his fellow citizens face in North Waziristan. The Miranshah press club said in a statement that he had voiced concerns about his safety. He leaves a widow and two young daughters.
The media community has condemned Dawar’s murder and has called for an investigation that brings the perpetrators to justice. No group has so far claimed the killing, RSF has learned.
Dawar was the fourth journalist to be killed in Waziristan since 2005, in an increasingly dangerous environment. Several politicians and election candidates have been killed recently in the district, which borders Afghanistan’s Khost province.
In the southern province of Sindh, the same day, Nasrullah Gadani, a journalist with the Awami Awaz newspaper, has been severely injured by motorcycle gunmen near the city of Mirpur Mathelo. Gadani denounced the feudal system in his province and was targeted because of his work, the newspaper’s editor, Jabbar Khattak, told RSF’s Pakistan representative.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Malaysia
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2024
- Event Description
Five pro-Palestine activists were summoned to the Sentul district police headquarters to give statements for demonstrating against an exhibition featuring US defence contractors earlier this month.
Lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan said the five, who were individually represented, were questioned this afternoon for about 90 minutes.
“All five stated that they would answer any charges brought against them in court,” he told FMT, adding that they were being investigated under the Peaceful Assembly Act.
Rajesh, who represented Jason S Ganesan, a freelance editor, said the five were summoned last week.
Earlier, Malaysiakini reported that the five, who are members of the Sekretariat Solidariti Palestin (SSP), were called up after gathering at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) and National Security (Natsec) Asia programme, which was held from May 7-9.
SSP had previously hit out at the presence of major US defence contractors, such as Lockheed Martin, at the three-day defence and security exhibition for providing arms to Israel which it said was engaged “in acts of genocide and brutal killings against the Palestinian people”.
Defence minister Khaled Nordin later defended the involvement of such companies, saying Putrajaya did not intervene in matters involving international companies.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2024
- Event Description
Agrarian conflicts are thought to have led to the criminalization of residents, as experienced by Subardin (55) and Agus (36), residents of Bungintimbe Village, North Morowali Regency (Morut), Central Sulawesi (Central Sulawesi).
Currently the two residents have been detained and named as suspects by the Morut Police for alleged threats that occurred in the PT Sinar Mestika Nusantara (SMN) mining area.
Due to the detention, the families of the suspects, namely their wives and children, came and complained to the Central Sulawesi Representative Commission of National Human Rights, on Thursday (30/5/24), accompanied by the Coordinator of the People's Front for Palm Oil Advocacy (FRAS) Eva Bande.
Previously, Subardin and his group in 2019 had gradually cleared 32 hectares of land, by planting cassava, bananas and coconuts, and at that location they also built a small hut as a place to rest.
In 2022 PT Sinar Mestika Nusantara will evict land that has been managed by Subardin and his group. On the grounds that the company has compensated the Tanaoge village community for losses.
Because they were defending their land rights, Subardin and his group protested by blocking the location of PT Sinar Mestika Nusantara. At that time an argument broke out between Subardin's group and company employees.
Furthermore, on May 21 2024, Subardin and one member of his group, Agus, were named as suspects, even though they were only defending their land which had been cultivated and managed together.
Meanwhile, Central Sulawesi FRAS Coordinator Eva Bande condemned the act of detaining the two residents. According to him, this is a form of criminalization and silencing of farmers who are fighting for their land rights.
The agrarian activist also urged the Central Sulawesi National Human Rights Commission to take firm steps to end the legal process by prioritizing dialogue and persuasion in the agrarian case that befell Subardin and Agus.
Confirmed separately, Head of Criminal Investigation Unit for North Morowali Police, AKP Arsyad Ma'aling, denied that the detention of the two people was related to land issues and land disputes.
"The case is not about land and land disputes, they were detained because they made threats with sharp weapons, we will release them later to the Police," he said briefly.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Agricultural business
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2024
- Event Description
The Civil Society Coalition has condemned all forms of threats, intimidation, and violence experienced by the residents of Kampung Susun Bayam (KSB).
The violence occurred on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at KSB in the Jakarta International Stadium (JIS) area, North Jakarta, and was carried out by security personnel from Jakarta International Stadium, Jakarta Propertindo (JakPro), the Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP).
The coalition, which includes LBH Jakarta, KontraS, WALHI Jakarta, YLBHI, Community Paralegal, Brotherhood of Kampung Bayam Residents (PWKB), Pancoran United Forum, Oppressed Kampung Pilar Community Forum (FORWAPTI), and Petamburan Public Housing Residents, stated this in their press release, quoted by KBA News on Saturday, May 21, 2024.
“From the information we gathered, JIS security personnel and the police approached KSB residents’ homes and immediately demanded that the residents vacate their residences. JIS security and police forcibly entered and used violence to force residents out of their homes, resulting in injuries to several residents and trauma to others, including women and children,” the statement read.
The coalition observed that police members allowed violence by Jakpro security personnel, which they view as a violation of the constitutional mandate as stated in Article 30 Paragraph (4) of the 1945 Constitution, which stipulates that the police’s function is to maintain public security and order by providing protection, fostering, and serving the community.
Additionally, about 500 combined forces consisting of private security, Civil Service Police, National Police, and the Armed Forces were deployed to evict 150 residents from 37 families (KK). “We assess this as a clear form of excessive use of force in security actions,” the coalition further explained.
The actions of these forces are prohibited by various internal regulations and other rules, specifically Police Regulation (Perkap) No. 1/2009 on the Use of Force in Police Actions and Perkap No. 8/2009 on the Implementation of Human Rights Principles and Standards in the Performance of Police Duties of the Republic of Indonesia.
“The Civil Society Coalition demands the Indonesian National Police, Mabes Polri Cq. Metro Jaya Police to stop all forms of repressive actions against Kampung Susun Bayam residents,” the release stated. Colonized by Our Own People
The forced eviction actions in Kampung Susun Bayam by the Satpol PP and security are considered arbitrary abuses of power. PT Jakarta Propertindo (JakPro), the BUMD of DKI Jakarta and manager of KSB, is accused of neglecting the humanistic aspect in handling the issue.
Human Rights and Democracy Activist Muhammad Adi Alim views the actions by the BUMD as orders from the higher-ups, specifically the Acting Governor of DKI Jakarta, Pj Heru Budi Hartono.
“This is the outcome of an acting governor appointed through a giveaway, who was never democratically elected by the people of Jakarta,” he stated when contacted by KBA News on Friday, May 24, 2024.
According to him, an acting official is appointed as an executor, a public servant, but what is done and decided does not represent the people. “Then who does it represent? Obviously, it represents those who appointed him as Acting Governor,” he firmly stated.
This social media activist recalled that what happened in Kampung Susun Bayam is part of the colonization performed by our own nation. “I am reminded of Bung Karno’s will, my struggle was easier because it was against other nations, your struggle is harder because it’s against your own nation,” he explained.
He said, to this day, Bung Karno’s will remains relevant. The colonization in this country is by those paid with the people’s money. “The events in Kampung Susun Bayam are proof of what Bung Karno said. The red carpet of colonization is laid out by our own nation,” he revealed.
The political TikToker expressed sadness over the events affecting the residents of Kampung Susun Bayam. He also hopes for justice to arrive soon. “May justice arrive soon. May the oppressors, those unjust to the people, receive fitting retribution,” he said.
Previously, KBA News reported that Muhammad Chozin Amirullah, Special Staff to Governor Anies Baswedan, condemned the JakPro elites who claimed the eviction of Kampung Susun Bayam on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, was conducted humanely.
Contrary to their claims, the eviction at KSB located in the JIS area involved over 500 officers and even led to injuries among the residents during the upheaval.
“How can that be considered humane when you deploy hundreds of officers, almost 500 or maybe more, consisting of Satpol PP, security. How can you say there was no intimidation,” he strongly stated.
“There was blood spilled there. There was blood scattered on the floor. There were mothers who fainted. There were children crying. You claim that was humane,” he further rejected the claims of the JakPro elites.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to housing
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military, Government, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 20, 2024
- Event Description
Discussion activities at the Water Forum for the People (The People's Water Forum/PWF) event in Denpasar City , Bali, Monday (20/5/2024) afternoon, discontinued. A group of people from a community organization came to the location of the event and forced the organizers of the Water for the People Forum to stop the discussion activities.
Not only did they force the event to be stopped, the group of community organizations (mass organizations) also took a number of billboards for the Water Forum for the People event. The coordinator of the mass organization argued that the activities of the Water Forum for the People could disrupt the conduciveness of Bali in the midst of holding the international conference World Water Forum (World Water Forum/WWF) 10.
"There has been a directive from the Governor of Bali to maintain a conducive atmosphere during the WWF activities," said Gus Yadi, coordinator of the organization, when interviewed by reporters.
Also read: Opening World Water Forum, Jokowi Reveals Threat of Water Crisis
The intimidation actions taken by the organization have been regretted by several parties, including participants, event organizers of the People's Air Forum who were on location, as well as several discussion participants who joined the event virtually.
The participant in the discussion from Carleton University in Canada, Meera Karunananthan, who attended the event virtually, stated that the act of intimidation towards the series of forums on Air for the People, which discussed water issues and concerns the interests of the general public, indicates a restriction on public rights.
Director of Bintang Gana Bali Foundation, who is also the Chairman of Bali Care Forum, I Nyoman Mardika, revealed that the organization of the People's Water Forum event, coordinated by the People's Coalition for the Right to Water and serving as a people's forum accompanying the 10th World Water Forum (WWF) in Bali, also discussed issues about water and water justice for the people. "We feel there is repressive action against this public activity," said Mardika, who was a speaker during the ongoing discussion.
In response to the suspension of the discussion event, Mardika declared that he had to leave the room to meet with the group of organizations, which disrupted the discussion and eventually caused it to stop.
In his statement to reporters, Mardika said that the hosting of the People's Forum on Air in Denpasar, scheduled to begin on Tuesday (21/5/20204), does not disturb the security situation and community conduciveness because there is no agenda for protests or demonstrations.
Encountered at the event location, Secretary General of Pro-Democracy (ProDem) 98 Bali, Roberto Hutabarat expressed his disappointment over the occurrence of intimidation from an organization claiming to represent the Bali community.
In his statement to reporters on Monday (May 20, 2024), Roberto stated that the repressive actions of certain civil society groups towards the public activity of the Air Forum for the People event indicates pressure from government officials and security forces who are anti-criticism.
"As facilitators of the event, we strive to ensure the implementation of the People's Water Forum," said Roberto, who is also part of the local committee organizing the People's Water Forum in Bali. "WWF also organizes discussions and meetings. Why is it forbidden when the community holds such meetings as a counter-narrative?" questioned Roberto.
Contacted separately, Head of Bali Regional Police Public Relations Division, Commissioner Jansen Avitus Panjaitan stated that there are no prohibitions for the implementation of discussions and demonstrations during the international events in Bali.
The activity can take place as long as it is carried out in an orderly manner and does not disturb the security and public order. In addition, the organizers have informed the police about the agenda and implementation of the activity beforehand.
The Water for the People Forum event, held in Denpasar, raised the theme of "Building Solidarity through the Water Justice Movement". The event was attended by participants from Indonesia and the international community.
Also read:Strengthening Solidarity and Prosperity Through Water
In a series of discussions under the People's Air Forum activities on Monday (May 20th, 2024), several participants who joined online and offline emphasized the importance of fair access to water for the community.
Online, Director Main of the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) Bali Women Crisis Center (WCC) Ni Nengah Budawati said that fair water access is correlated with fulfilling the rights of women and children.
The Chairperson of the National Executive Body of the Women's Solidarity Armayanti Sanusi stated that ensuring fair access to water is also a form of respect for women's rights. Water is a fundamental necessity that affects all aspects of community life, including women.
Found at a discussion event in Denpasar City, Armayanti also expressed her disappointment with the pressure and intimidation during the implementation of the People's Water Forum event.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 20, 2024
- Event Description
Police in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi have arrested trade unionist Vu Minh Tien, according to The 88 Project, an international nonprofit that campaigns for freedom of speech in Vietnam.
Tien is head of policy and legal affairs at the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor and director of the Institute for Workers and Trade Unions, the group said.
Tien was being held under Article 337 of Vietnam’s criminal code, which covers “deliberate disclosure of classified information; appropriation, trading [and] destruction of classified documents,” the group said.
Tien was last seen in public at a workshop in Ho Chi Minh City on March 21, The 88 Project said.
News of his arrest follows the detention on April 24 of Nguyen Van Binh, director general of the Labor Ministry’s legal department.
Binh was arrested for disclosing state secrets under Article 337, according to state broadcaster the Voice of Vietnam.
Vietnam only has one state-affiliated union. The two unionists were working to bring labor law in line with international standards by ratifying International Labour Organization Convention 87 which allows workers to form unions, The 88 Project said.
“These arrests are yet another example of the failure of international organizations to say a mumbling word about the advocates and reformers they are so keen to champion until these people wind up in jail,” said the group’s co-director, Ben Swanton.
He called on the International Labour Organization, the European Union and the United States to immediately issue public statements condemning Vietnam for arresting the trade unionists.
“Western governments that claim to care about human rights need to break their silence about Vietnam’s policy of violating those very same rights,” Swanton said.
Radio Free Asia phoned Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ask about Tien’s arrest but no one answered. A call to the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor was also not answered.
International nonprofit CIVICUS joined calls for the unconditional release of Tien and Binh.
“These arrests highlight the systematic targeting of human rights defenders in country by the regime and makes a mockery of Vietnam’s membership of the Human Rights Council,” said CIVICUS Asia researcher Josef Benedict referring to Vietnam’s place on the United Nations rights body for a three-year term.
“We call on the international community to speak up, especially the EU, and push for the release of the two union activists and for greater freedom for trade unions in the country.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- May 17, 2024
- Event Description
On 17 May 2024, the Bishkek City Court refused to consider human rights media outlet Kloop Media’s appeal of the February 9th decision to shut down the outlet. The Court stated that Kloop Media had a late submission of the text of the appeal and thus refused to review it. Kloop’s lawyer, in his commentary, said that he made a mistake in the address of the Ministry of Justice building in Bishkek and received the submitted appeal back, as it could not be delivered. The lawyer resubmitted it immediately; however, the Court denied it, as the timeline for the appeal has passed. Kloop Media will appeal the refusal to consider its appeal.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Censorship, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Media freedom, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to work
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 17, 2024
- Event Description
Cassava farmers working on Lampung Provincial Government land in Kota Baru demonstrate at the South Lampung Police Station.
This was the result of a farmer named Tini who worked on Lampung Provincial Government land in Kota Baru, South Lampung.
She was policed on suspicion of damaging a tractor unit while defending her farm which was evicted in March 2024.
This is registered with the police report number STTPL/B/120/III/2024/SPKT/Polda Lampung.
Most recently, Tini has begun to be questioned regarding the report on Friday (17/5/2204).
As a result of Tini's questioning by the police, hundreds of farmers cultivating Lampung Provincial Government land in Kota Baru raided the police station.
To be precise, at the South Lampung Police Station, hundreds of farmers came in six trucks.
They reject the criminalization of their colleague Tini.
"The farmers used six trucks from Kota Baru to the South Lampung Police. They carried posters containing their demands and rejection of all forms of criminalization against farmers," said the farmer's legal assistant from LBH Bandar Lampung Prabowo Pamungkas, Saturday 18/5/2024).
He said that the arrival of hundreds of farmers was not only to reject the criminalization of Tini, but also to support their colleague.
"This is done by farmers as a form of solidarity with fellow farmers in terms of defending their cultivation rights," he said.
The figure of Tini, among farmers cultivating Lampung Provincial Government land in Kota Baru, is quite well known.
He said Tini was vocal in defending farmers against the land rental policy issued by the Lampung Provincial Government for this land.
The policy is in 2022, the farmer claims, the land has been cultivated since the 1950s and there was no order to pay before that.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 16, 2024
- Event Description
Former prisoner Dang Thi Hue, who was released in 2023 after serving 39 months in prison for protesting BOT projects in 2019, has reported to Project88 that she was “abducted” by Thai Binh provincial security agents on May 16 while she was running errands. She said the agents were a group of four men and two women, only one of whom was in uniform. She was held in temporary detention for 24 hours without any notice given to her family. The anxiety allegedly caused her father to have a heart attack. Luckily, her younger sister, who works at Lam Hoa Hospital in Thai Binh, was able to come home quickly to revive her. Hue was released the next day and told Project88 that she is OK and that her health is good.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 16, 2024
- Event Description
A Taguig City court convicted child rights advocate Ma. Salome “Sally” Ujano of rebellion on Thursday, May 16.
Ujano’s lawyer Finella Jocom confirmed with Rappler that Taguig City Regional Court Branch 266 sentenced her client to a minimum of 10 years to a maximum of 17 years and four months in prison.
Jocom said that the court did not allow Ujano – who was granted provisional liberty in December 2022 – to continue her bail, so she was turned over to police authorities in Taguig City.
She will later be placed under the custody of the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City.
“For now, we manifested with the court that the defense will file a motion for reconsideration. So we have 15 days to file the MR. After that, we’ll see what happens,” Jocom said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Police arrested Ujano in Malolos, Bulacan, in November 2021 after serving the arrest warrant issued by Judge Virgilio Alpajora of Regional Trial Court Branch 59 in Lucena City in 2006 for the crime of rebellion.
The case stemmed from Ujano’s alleged involvement in the ambush of two military personnel in the province of Quezon in 2005.
Her daughter Karla decried the allegations against her mother as baseless, saying Ujano was serving as executive director of Women’s Crisis Center in 2005, the year the alleged crime happened.
Human rights group Karapatan has condemned Ujano’s detention, saying that the police were lying to justify Ujano’s arrest.
Ujano has been the national coordinator of the Philippines Against Child Trafficking since 2008. She served in the Women’s Crisis Center as mobilization officer from 2006 to 2007, and as executive director from 2000 to 2006.
Ujano was arrested at the height of the Rodrigo Duterte administration’s crackdown on progressive individuals. Under his presidency, activists endured intensified red-tagging and violence.
Karapatan said at least 1,161 activists have been arrested and detained under the Duterte administration.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- May 15, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Kazakhstan has fined two activists from the Feminita movement that defends women's rights for taking part in an unsanctioned rally in Almaty to protest against a 24-year prison sentence handed to former Economy Minister Quandyq Bishimbaev for violently beating his wife to death last year. Gulbaqyt Otebai and Gulzada Serzhan were ordered each to pay a 184,000 tenge ($415) fine for organizing and taking part in an unsanctioned public event. Both women had pleaded not guilty. Otebai and Serzhan were among several activists of Feminita who marched to demand a life sentence for Bishimbaev.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- NGO staff, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- May 15, 2024
- Event Description
Pakistan authorities must immediately reveal the whereabouts of freelance Kashmiri journalist Syed Farhad Ali Shah, who was taken from his home at night by unidentified men over a week ago, and stop intimidating the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
At about 1 a.m. on May 15, four men appeared at Ali Shah’s door as he returned home, dragged him down the stairs, and forced him into a vehicle, according to a copy of a petition filed with the Islamabad High Court later that day, which was reviewed by CPJ, and a journalist familiar with the case, who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The men damaged CCTV cameras that recorded the incident, and took a digital video recorder containing camera footage, according to multiple media reports.
At the time of publication, Ali Shah’s whereabouts were still unknown, the journalist’s wife, Syeda Urooj Zainab, told CPJ.
“The secretive, late-night seizure of journalist Syed Farhad Ali Shah is further evidence of an intensifying crackdown on media freedom in Pakistan,” said CPJ Program Director Carlos Martinez de la Serna. “Authorities must either present Ali Shah in court or immediately release him and ensure that law enforcement agencies do their job of investigating crimes against journalists.”
Zainab told CPJ that she witnessed her husband being taken away by the men, two of whom were dressed in what appeared to be a black uniform. Zainab said she reported the incident to the local police, but they did not open a case to investigate her husband’s disappearance.
In her High Court petition, Zainab requested that Ali Shah be found and produced before the court and that those responsible for his disappearance be identified, investigated, and prosecuted. The petition named the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, and the Ministry of Defense, as part which the ISI operates, as well as the Ministry of Interior, Federal Investigative Agency, and Inspector General of Police Islamabad as respondents in the case.
Pakistan’s powerful ISI has previously been accused of forced disappearances – a major issue in Pakistan, where prominent reporters including Imran Riaz Khan, Sami Abraham, Syed Fawad Ali Shah, and Gohar Wazir went missing in 2023.
Zainab told CPJ that she received a call on May 17 on her husband’s number from an unknown person who asked her to withdraw her petition and promised to free the journalist on May 18.
Zainab told CPJ that she did not know who the caller was, but the independent daily Dawn cited a court order that said Zainab was phoned and received text messages from ISI officials who assured her that her husband would be freed the next day. In response, Zainab’s lawyer applied to withdraw the petition and shared a copy of the withdrawal application with ISI officials, but Ali Shah was not released, Dawn said.
“This Court is not satisfied with the working of the Secretary Ministry of Defence as well as officials of ISI as of now there is direct allegation against the agency,” Dawn quoted the court order as saying.
At a hearing on May 20, Justice Mohsin Akhtar ordered the police to inform the head of the ISI that Shah “should be produced at any cost,” Dawn reported, but a defense ministry official said Ali Shah was not in the ISI’s custody.
The defense and interior secretaries were ordered to attend court on May 21, but Zainab told CPJ on May 23 that there had been no further hearings.
With 22,500 followers on the social platform X, Ali Shah has reported critically on protests over rising prices in Pakistan-administered Kashmir since May 11, in which at least three people died.
Separately, on May 18, the Baluchistan police and local administration locked the gates of the Quetta Press Club, in the provincial capital, to prevent a local advocacy group, Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC), from holding a seminar, according to media reports and the local non-profit Pakistan Press Foundation.
The BYC, which campaigns against what it calls a genocide against the ethnic Baloch population in Pakistan’s southwestern Baluchistan province, planned to hold a conference highlighting the group’s opposition to government plans to build a fence around the port city of Gwadar.
The campaigners broke the locks and the event went ahead, surrounded by a police cordon, those sources said.
Syed Shahzad Nadeem Bukhari, Deputy Inspector General of Police in Islamabad, did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment via messaging app.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- May 14, 2024
- Event Description
A Kyrgyz court on May 14 sentenced government critic and journalist Oljobai Shakir (aka Egemberdiev) to five years in prison on a charge of making calls online for mass unrest. Shakir was arrested in August 2023, days after he criticized the government's decision to hand four spa centers near Lake Issyk-Kul to Uzbekistan and called President Sadyr Japarov and the State Committee of National Security chief Kamchybek Tashiev to participate in public debates with him.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- May 14, 2024
- Event Description
An Astana court on May 14 fined activist Elvira Bekzadina of the unregistered Algha, Qazaqstan (Forward, Kazakhstan) opposition party 110,760 tenges ($250) on a charge of disobeying police. Police detained Bekzadina two days earlier when she was going to hold a public poll on the results of President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev's time in office since March 2019. Bekzadina rejected the charge, accusing the police of physically abusing her during her detention. In November, a court in Astana sentenced the chairman of Algha, Qazaqstan, Marat Zhylanbaev, to seven years in prison on extremism charges that he also rejects as politically motivated.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- May 14, 2024
- Event Description
A young activist jailed for insulting Thailand’s monarchy died on Tuesday following a prolonged hunger strike, officials said, prompting an outpouring of grief and renewed calls for justice reform in the Southeast Asian kingdom
Netiporn “Bung” Sanesangkhom, 28, died after suffering a “sudden cardiac arrest,” Thailand’s Corrections Department said in a statement. A medical team tried to resuscitate her before transferring her to Bangkok’s Thammasat University Hospital but she “did not respond to treatment,” the department said.
An autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause of death, the department added.
Netiporn was a member of protest group Thalu Wang, which has pushed for reform of Thailand’s powerful monarchy and amendment of the country’s draconian lese majeste law, in which criticizing the king, queen, or heir apparent can lead to a maximum 15-year prison sentence.
The group’s name loosely translates to “piercing through the palace,” in reference to its drive to hold the monarchy accountable; it campaigns by holding public opinion polls questioning the monarchy’s power.
Netiporn had been part of the nationwide 2020 youth-led protests that saw millions of young Thais take to the streets of major cities calling for constitutional, democratic and military reforms, and, for the first time, openly criticizing the monarchy and publicly questioning its power and wealth.
She had been in jail since January 26 and was awaiting trial, according to legal advocacy group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
While in detention, Netiporn went on a 65-day hunger strike until April to protest the jailing of political dissidents without bail, the group said. During this time, she had been moved back and forth to the prison hospital due to her deteriorating health.
After Netiporn was sent back to jail on April 4, the Thai Corrections Department said she was able to eat and drink normally, but she was weak and suffered from swollen limbs and anemia. She had refused to take “minerals and anti-anemia supplements,” the department said.
The activist faced seven criminal cases, including two lese majeste charges. She previously spent 94 days in jail in 2022 and conducted a hunger strike before being released on bail, which was later revoked.
One lese majeste case against her was filed in relation to a 2022 protest where she held up a banner at a busy shopping mall in Bangkok that read: “Did the royal procession cause an inconvenience?”
The other lese majeste charge is from a similar 2022 protest where she held a sign asking the public: “Do you agree that the government allows the king to use power as he pleases?”
In an open letter Netiporn wrote from jail in March, she said growing up as a judge’s daughter made her realize “this country doesn’t exist to serve small people’s justice.”
“You don’t have to be a judge’s daughter to understand the scale of the failure in the justice system. Their existence is not for the people, they exist shamelessly for the powers and a few groups of people in this country,” she wrote. “By simply asking question and honking a car, you go to jail.”
Calls for reform
Netiporn’s death has shocked many in the country and sparked renewed calls for reforms to the judicial system, which allows activists to be denied bail and held in detention for extended periods of time before trial.
“This is a shocking reminder that Thai authorities are harshly denying pro-democracy activists their freedom in an apparent bid to silence the peaceful expression of dissent. Many are currently detained, with their right to temporary release on bail denied,” said Amnesty International in a statement.
“This tragic incident should serve as a wake-up call to Thai authorities to drop charges against and release all human rights defenders and other people who are unjustly detained.”
On Tuesday night, supporters held a candlelight vigil outside the Southern Bangkok Criminal Court. Those attending included Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul, a fellow activist who also faces lese majeste charges for her involvement in the 2020 protests.
“I feel so shocked. I question myself, did she really die?” Panusaya told CNN Wednesday. “She didn’t receive any justice for her cases.”
Calling on the government of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin to respond to her death, Panusaya demanded the release of all political prisoners in Thailand.
“Do we have to have more people die before you will care?” she asked.
On Wednesday, Srettha called Netiporn’s death a “tragic incident,” adding he had ordered Thailand’s Ministry of Justice to investigate the circumstances surrounding it.
“I would like to convey my condolences to her family. I am confident that we will give justice,” he said.
Responding to the calls for the release of all political prisoners, Strettha said, “I believe that the justice minister has heard about the call, and he’s working on looking into the whole legal system. We have to give justice to everyone.”
Thailand has some of the world’s strictest lese majeste laws and sentences for those convicted under Section 112 of the country’s criminal code, can be decades long. Hundreds of people have been prosecuted in recent years, including Mongkol Thirakhot, who was sentenced to a record 50 years in prison in January for social media posts deemed damaging to the king.
For years, human rights organizations and free speech campaigners have said lese majeste has been used as a political tool to silence critics of the Thai government.
Rights groups say the right to freedom of expression in Thailand has come under increased attack since the 2020 protests. Despite the change from a military-backed government to civilian leadership last year, surveillance and intimidation against activists and students continues, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
The legal advocacy group said that since the start of those protests in July 2020 and up until March 2024, at least 1,954 people have been prosecuted or charged for their participation in political assemblies and for speaking out, with 286 of those cases involving children.
At least 270 people have been charged with lese majeste during that time, the group added.
“The death of Ms. Netiporn is evidence that the problems of political prosecution and detention of pro-democracy activists, especially in lèse-majesté cases, are still very much alive under the Pheu Thai government,” the group’s advocacy lead, Akarachai Chaimaneekarakate told CNN.
Netiporn’s death comes as Thailand is running for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council and while the Thai government is negotiating a free trade agreement with the European Union, Akarachai added.
“The right to bail must be granted to political detainees who have not been found guilty of any crimes by a final judgment,” he said. “The price of fundamental freedoms should not be their lives.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Violation
- Death
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- May 14, 2024
- Event Description
On May 14, the Supreme Court bench of Justices MM Sundresh and SVN Bhatti granted bail to Gautam Navlakha in Bhima Koregaon conspiracy case, arguing that the accused has already undergone 4 years of incarceration and the trial may take “years and years and years” to complete. The Supreme Court did not extend the stay on the bail, noting that the charges are yet to be framed and six of the co-accused in the case have already secured bail. It also said that the Bombay High Court has passed a detailed order on December 19, 2023 granting bail to Navlakha, against which National Investigation Agency (NIA) had filed this appeal. The bench took cognizance of the fact that there are 370 witnesses in the case, which would prolong the completion of the trial. Importantly, as a precondition to bail, Navlakha has been asked to pay 20 lakhs for the security expenses incurred during his house arrest. Pertinently, there had been an argument between the two parties over calculation of the cost incurred for his house arrest security, with NIA previously sending him the bill of over 1.64 crores, which Navlakha’s lawyer decried as ‘extortion’.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- India: two HRDs sent to custody on fabricated charges
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- May 14, 2024
- Event Description
Reporters from Makwanpur, Bagmati Province Manju Mainali and Chhabi Anitya were misbehaved while reporting on May 14. Mainali is reporter to Himalaya Times national daily and Anitya is associated with Sourya daily.
Reporter Mainali told Freedom Forum that She along with fellow reporter Anitya reached Hetauda Sub-metropolitan city’s ward office to collect news and information on Chepang community children being deprived of birth registration. Reporters duo were on follow-up reporting for the news published four months ago about six children in a Chepang community family deprived of birth registration certificate.
“When we asked ward chairperson Deepak Thapa about the birth registration of the children, Thapa furiously told us to leave the office or he would use force to send us out. Thapa also called us ‘thief’ and seized reporter Anitya’s mobile while he was trying to record video of the incident”, shared reporter Mainali.
“Furthermore, Thapa and other ward members again took to social media to share 'fake information' about us through Facebook live. This is serious harassment, I am very disturbed. In this situation, I am unable to continue my profession”, said Mainali in a disappointment.
Freedom Forum condemns the harassment meted out to reporters. Ward Chaiperson’s behavior towards reporters is a sheer violation of press freedom and their right to information. FF urges the concerned authority to respect journalists' right to free reporting on public concern.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Online Attack and Harassment, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- May 13, 2024
- Event Description
One week after the end of her four-year prison term, the Chinese authorities refuse to reveal the whereabouts of journalist Zhang Zhan. Deeply concerned that she may still be detained, severely ill, or placed under heavy surveillance, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urges Beijing to disclose information about Zhang Zhan immediately and ensure her full and unconditional release without further delay.
Chinese journalist and former lawyer Zhang Zhan, detained for four years for her independent reporting on the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in China under the charge of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” was due to be released from Shanghai Women’s Prison a week ago, on 13 May, following the completion of her sentence. But the journalist remains unaccounted for, while authorities refuse to disclose information about her whereabouts, after stopping and interrogating activists coming to pick her up from prison.
Even more concerning, her family, who used to openly share updates about the journalist’s situation, is now unreachable, and in the weeks prior to Zhang Zhan’s scheduled release, human rights defenders and lawyers were threatened by authorities and warned not to raise her case internationally. Zhang Zhan had been severely weakened by a hunger strike she had carried out to protest her innocence, and there are credible reasons to believe that her health has deteriorated even further during her final months of detention, possibly motivating the Chinese regime to keep her hidden from the public eye.
In China, reporters locked up for their work often remain under detention or surveillance even upon completion of their prison term. The European Union, the UK and the US have expressed deep concern over reports that Zhang Zhan has disappeared, following her expected release.
Zhang Zhan was arrested in May 2020, while covering the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in Wuhan, in central-eastern China. She had posted more than 100 videos on social media before being arrested on 14 May 2020 and sentenced to four years in prison by a Shanghai court seven months later.
Serious concerns about Zhang's health
On several occasions, RSF has called for her release and warned about the ill treatment that she has been subjected to while in prison. During her first months in detention, Zhang Zhan almost died after going on a total hunger strike. Prison officials forcibly fed her through a nasal tube and sometimes left her handcuffed for days.
When Zhang’s mother visited her in prison in July 2023, she was very weak and weighed only 37 kilograms despite being 1.7 metres tall, which is half of what she weighed prior to detention. Zhang is also suffering from severe malnutrition, a gastrointestinal disease, and a low white blood cell count.
China, the world's biggest prison for journalists and press freedom defenders with at least 119 detainees, is ranked 172nd out of 180 countries in the 2024 RSF World Press Freedom Index.
Update:
As international pressure grew, on 21 May 2024, Zhang Zhan released a short video via an intermediary confirming her release from prison and stating that she was at home with her family. However, she remains under strict surveillance by the authorities. RSF remains concerned by her situation and emphasises that partial freedom is not freedom at all. Diplomatic intervention remains crucial to ensure her full and unconditional release without delay.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- May 13, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, on May 13 fined journalist Zhamila Maricheva for an online article she wrote supporting RFE/RL's Kazakh Service, known locally as Radio Azattyq.
The court ordered Maricheva to pay 73,840 tenges ($167) for "distributing false information."
The charge stems from an article she posted on her ProTenge Telegram channel in January where she raised the issue of problems faced by Radio Azattyq in obtaining official accreditation from the Foreign Ministry, which had sparked fears the government was trying to stifle independent media.
Maricheva praised Radio Azattyq for what she called its professionalism, stressing the importance of the broadcaster's programs in Kazakhstan.
Another Kazakh journalist, Askhat Niyazov, reposted Maricheva's article at the time and was charged with slander.
A court in late April acquitted Niyazov and closed the case, stressing that there was nothing criminal in Niyazov's actions.
Maricheva reiterated her innocence as her trial began on May 2 and stated that the police violated her rights on April 24 by detaining her for questioning while she was jogging instead of officially summoning her to a police station.
Maricheva's lawyer, Asel Toqaeva, asked the court to dismiss the case against her client, saying that Maricheva's constitutional rights were violated by the police during her detention and questioning.
In January 2023, the Foreign Ministry denied accreditation to 36 Radio Azattyq journalists. Some of the correspondents had not been able to extend their accreditation since late 2022.
The situation was exacerbated when a group of Kazakh lawmakers approved a draft bill that would allow the tightly controlled former Soviet republic's authorities to refuse accreditation to foreign media outlets and their reporters on grounds of national security.
RFE/RL reached an agreement with the Kazakh Foreign Ministry over the accreditations on April 23.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- May 12, 2024
- Event Description
Journalist Raghav Trivedi, who works with the digital outlet Molitics, was beaten up and locked in a room allegedly by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers while covering Union home minister Amit Shah’s rally in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. Trivedi was taken to hospital for treatment after the attack.
According to him, he spoke to several women at the rally who said they had been given Rs 100 to attend and said they did not know who Shah is. When he asked BJP workers at the rally about this allegation, he was first asked to delete videos of these women and then attacked.
“Initially, they denied any wrongdoing but when I informed them I had recorded statements of women, a group forcibly took me to a secluded place and demanded I delete the recording. When I refused, they began to assault me… I pleaded with police and bystanders for help, but no one intervened… I lost consciousness. When I regained consciousness, I found myself in hospital,” Trivedi told The Indian Express.
An FIR has been registered against six unknown persons under Sections 147 (rioting), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the IPC based on a complaint from Trivedi’s colleague and cameraperson, Sanjeet Sahni.
In a video of the incident police persons can be seen in the vicinity while Trivedi is beaten, but do not intervene. Trivedi too confirmed that the police did not act. He also says that the attackers used anti-Muslim slurs against him. “I kept requesting people to stop. There were 40-50 police personnel too, but no one came to my rescue as they called me ‘mullah’ and ‘attanki’ and punched me 150-200 times,” he told Newslaundry.
Several opposition parties and leaders have come out strongly in Trivedi’s support, and condemned both BJP workers and leaders and the Uttar Pradesh police for the incident.
“These incidents are a sign that the people of BJP are frustrated with the defeat that is visible. Now the injustice is about to end,” the Congress said on X.
Several senior journalists too have condemned the attack. The Press Club of India in a statement “vehemently condemned” what happened and said, “We urge the EC and local authorities to ensure strict action against the attackers.”
“Journalists in their day to day reportage have been subjected to regular physical intimidation, harassment and attack. Such things undermine India, being the fourth pillar of democracy,” the statement concluded.
In the recently released 2024 World Press Freedom Index, India ranked at 159 of 176 countries. Reporters Without Borders, which releases the rankings, said that India’s position is “unworthy of a democracy”.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Restrictions on Movement, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 11, 2024
- Event Description
On May 11, police officers, once again armed and in plainclothes, arrested another two Kuala Langkat villagers who were opposed to the clearing of the mangroves. Safii, 48, and Taufik, 34, were arrested while fishing. Ateng, a fellow fisherman on the same boat, described how the officers arrived in a speedboat around 9 a.m. and ordered the two men to come with them.
“We did not see the police who arrested them show any identification or provide an arrest warrant,” Ateng told Mongabay.
At night, the villagers gathered at the police station and called for the release of the two men.
Safii and Taufik said they were arrested by the police because they were accused of damaging the home of a man identified only by the initials SAR, said to be BP’s right-hand man. That incident occurred hours after the arrest of Ilham, with villagers accusing SAR of being behind the arrest. Safii and Taufik said that while they did attend the protest outside SAR’s home, they weren’t involved in any kind of vandalism.
During the subsequent arrest of Safii and Taufik, fellow fishermen confirmed seeing SAR on board the police speedboat, pointing at the two men and appearing to order the police to detain them.
Sumiati Surbakti, chair of the Srikandi Lestari Foundation, a women-led environmental nonprofit, said field visits by her organization with LBH Medan and the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence, an NGO known as Kontras, showed a high number of oil palms in protected forest areas in Langkat.
“This omission shows that policyholders from the provincial to the village level don’t support the Joko Widodo government’s program to suppress climate change by conserving mangrove forests,” Sumiati said.
Adi Yoga Kemit, a lawyer for Kontras, said their investigation had found villagers who opposed the destruction of mangrove forests faced threats and intimidation by thugs hired by the businessmen.
“We urge the police to arrest the financial backers and anyone involved in destroying mangrove forests in Kuala Langkat,” Adi said. “Stop criminalizing people who protect mangroves.”
Advocates from LBH Medan have twice visited the North Sumatra police headquarters to request information on the encroachment of Langkat’s mangrove forests.
“We urge that Ilham’s report regarding the damage to the mangrove ecosystem in Langkat be followed up immediately,” Ali said.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- May 10, 2024
- Event Description
Police and district guards blocked a march of around 60 Samrong Tbong community members living next to Boeng Tamok lake in northern Phnom Penh. This morning, authorities were violent and shoved community members who were walking to the Prek Pnov district hall to meet officials after six families received eviction orders signed on 8 May to make way for road construction.
Around 60 police and district security guards cordoned off community members, pushed them back, were violent with some of the members and prevented the group from walking to the district hall. Residents were forced to return to their homes escorted by security forces.
Samrong Tbong community members have faced repeated police harassment, criminal charges and threats of eviction as the government has parcelled off and filled in large swathes of Boeng Tamok lake, giving plots of land to various government ministries, officials and well-connected individuals.
Some community members were injured during an altercation in February with authorities who were filling the lake area people used for fish farming.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- May 10, 2024
- Event Description
Wai Moe Naing, the leader of the Monywa People’s Strike Committee, who was detained in the Monywa prison in Sagaing Region, was sentenced to another 20 years in prison by the military junta, said Shin Thant, a member of the Monywa People’s Leading Strike Committee.
On the afternoon of May 10, 2024, six people, including Wai Moe Naing, were sentenced by the military junta in Monywa Prison Court.
“It was ordered by the prison court. Six people, including Wai Moe Naing, were sentenced to 20 years in prison for murdering two policemen in the Monywa Industrial Zone. The six people and the rest, more than 30 people who were unjustly arrested, were sentenced,” Shin Thant said.
Currently, the military junta has been arresting and killing anyone who obstructs them. Shin Thant says that only if the revolution is united and successful will prisoners be able to return home.
“Today, the prison court sentenced six people, including Wai Moe Naing, separately to serve 20 years in prison under Section 302 (2)/149 of the Penal Code,” said a person close to the court.
On April 15th, 2021, junta troops rammed into him with a car while he was riding a motorcycle in a strike on Tharsi Road, Monywa.
Wai Moe Naing was charged with violating Natural the Disaster Management Law, rioting, participating in a crowd, and carrying a deadly weapon, among other cases sentenced to a total of 74 years in prison.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 10, 2024
- Event Description
Twenty-three development workers and activists here have posted bail worth P200,000 each in connection with terrorism financing charges filed against them by the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Based on a press release from the 302nd Infantry Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division of the Philippine Army, the DOJ filed the case against both former and incumbent members of the Cebu-based nongovernmental organization (NGO) Community Empowerment Resource Network (CERNET) on May 10.
The DOJ accused 27 individuals associated with CERNET of violating Section 8 (ii) in relation to Section 9 of the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012.
Lawyer Mel Ebo, the legal counsel of CERNET, said in a press conference on Friday, May 17, that they were shocked to find out that an information had already been filed with a court before they were given a copy of the DOJ’s resolution on the preliminary investigation of the case.
The justice department typically furnishes respondents a copy of its resolution before filing an information with a court.
In August 2023, the DOJ issued a subpoena to CERNET in relation to the Army’s accusations against the NGO of financing terrorist activities.
The development workers attended and submitted counter-affidavits during the preliminary investigation held in Cebu on September 28, 2023.
“The DOJ and the complainants made a very sloppy investigation in this case because other than the individual respondents that are included in the complaint, they also included some respondents who have passed on already,” Ebo said.
According to the lawyer, one of the respondents, labor rights advocate Jaime Paglinawan, is not even a member of CERNET.
He said out of the 27 respondents, only 23 were confirmed to have posted bail. One respondent’s condition is still unknown, while three respondents have already passed away.
On Tuesday, May 14, the Regional Trial Court Branch 74 in Cebu City issued arrest warrants against the 27 accused individuals.
Ebo said that as of Thursday, May 16, a majority of the respondents whose names he did not disclose for security reasons had already paid the bail amount of P200,000 each.
“Considering that at the prosecution level, we have presented numerous documents that will show that CERNET has no involvement in any of this, we are studying the possibility of filing counter-suits,” the lawyer said.
Silencing NGOs CERNET staff Macy Crecencio said during the press conference that the charges have halted the organization’s services.
Since its founding in 2001, the NGO had provided legal assistance and livelihood programs to marginalized sectors, especially farming and fishing communities, in the Visayas.
“It’s a huge misfortune to our partner organizations who have lost support. Mind you, these communities already have little to no access to social services,” Crecencio said.
According to the development worker, the organization has faced multiple red-tagging threats and attacks against its members in the past, including the abduction of CERNET staff Dyan Gumanao and partner Armand Dayoha.
Ebo described the charges as a “witch hunt,” citing criminal cases filed against organizations like the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines and the Cordillera Peoples Alliance.
“Since CERNET has been charged, the Eastern Visayas-based Leyte Center for Development (LCDe) and the Negros-based Paghida-et sa Kauswagan Development Group Inc. have also been targeted, with the bank accounts of LCDe and its staff frozen,” a statement from human rights group Karapatan read.
- Impact of Event
- 27
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Labour rights defender, NGO, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 10, 2024
- Event Description
Xuan Phuoc Prison authorities have sent political prisoner Dang Dang Phuoc, 61, a music teacher in Dak Lak Province, to solitary confinement as a punishment for his violation of unspecified regulations, his wife, Le Thi Ha, told Radio Free Asia (RFA).
Ha said that she learned about Phuoc’s punishment when she received a notice from the prison saying that her husband was being disciplined in a solitary cell between May 10 and 20. The notice did not specify his violations, but Ha believed it resulted from her last visitation on May 9, when Phuoc gave her a piece of paper containing a cellmate’s phone number and asked her to pass it to that prisoner’s family. The correctional officers intervened and took that information away.
Ha also expressed worries over her husband’s health since prison rations lack nutritious food, and visitations from relatives have been reduced to once every two months from once a month. She added that she would file a complaint with the Phu Yen Provincial Procuracy regarding Phuoc’s punishment.
The Dak Lak music teacher received an eight-year sentence in June 2023 on charges of “distributing anti-state propaganda.” Phuoc lost an appeal in September of the same year and was transferred to Xuan Phuoc Prison in Phu Yen Province.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 10, 2024
- Event Description
Karapatan condemns the freeze order issued by the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) on the accounts of the Citizens’ Disaster Response Center (CDRC), a development NGO with partners nationwide focused on community-based disaster management.
In an order dated May 10, 2024, the AMLC ordered the CDRC’s accounts frozen allegedly because the latter is a direct recipient of funds from the bank accounts of Leyte Center for Development Inc. (LCDe), which are subject to a separate freeze order. An AMLC order dated May 2 had earlier frozen the bank accounts of the multi-awarded LCDe as well as the personal accounts of its staff.
The CDRC has filed a petition before the Court of Appeals questioning both the basis of the freeze order and the constitutionality of the AMLC’s power to freeze. In the same petition, the CDRC explained that the funds in question had been returned by LCDe as they exceeded what was intended for relief operations after Typhoon Agaton in April 2022.
The CDRC is but the latest development NGO to be targeted by the AMLC in the arbitrary and unjust exercise of its powers. Before the CRDC and LCDe, other NGOs with strong presence in impoverished and marginalized communuties like the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP), the Amihan Federation of Peasant Women (Amihan), the Cebu-based Community Empowerment and Resource Network (CERNET) and the Negros-based Paghida-et Development Group had been maliciously red- and terror-tagged and their bank accounts frozen or their staff baselessly charged with violation of RA 10168 or the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012. The freeze orders and court cases have paralyzed these NGOs’ operations and effectively sabotaged much-needed development, relief and rehabilitation projects, mostly in poor and far-flung communities.
Karapatan firmly stands in solidarity with the CDRC and all other affected NGOs in their fight against the AMLC’s unjust and arbitrary freeze orders which are issued after ex parte proceedings violative of the right to due process and providing little to no mechanisms for redress. It views these successive assaults against development NGOs as an escalation of the Marcos Jr. regime’s drive to suppress civil liberties, stifle dissent and further constrict civic space.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to access to funding, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to work
- HRD
- NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- May 9, 2024
- Event Description
At least four people were reported killed on Thursday during clashes between protesters and Taliban security forces in eastern Afghanistan.
Residents in Nangarhar province, which borders Pakistan, held a demonstration after being told by Taliban authorities to vacate their homes for the construction of a customs clearing facility, according to witnesses and officials.
Protesters blocked a busy highway linking Afghanistan to Pakistan and refused to allow the destruction of their properties. Taliban security forces fired gunshots to disperse the crowd and clear the highway to allow trade convoys to resume their journey in both directions, eyewitnesses reported.
An area information and culture department spokesperson confirmed the clashes, saying residents "created chaos in response" to the official order. Arafat Mohajer said that the violence resulted in the death of a Taliban officer and "a number of people who were occupying the [state[ land [illegally]." He did not share further details.
Protesters refuted the official claims, saying they had the deeds and owned the land.
A resident in Jalalabad, the provincial capital, confirmed to VOA by phone that firing by Taliban security forces killed three protesters.
The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan three years ago and faced no public opposition to their hard-line policies until this month.
Last week, farmers and residents took to the streets in northeastern Badakhshan province to protest the eradication of poppy fields by the Taliban counternarcotics units.
Security forces opened fire to disperse the demonstrators, killing two people.
Hibatullah Akhundzada, the reclusive Taliban supreme leader, has imposed a nationwide ban on poppy cultivation and production, usage, transportation and trade of all illicit drugs in Afghanistan.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to life, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- May 9, 2024
- Event Description
It is said that the Yangon-based Octopus Youth Organization, which protests against the military coup, has lost contact with two women after military junta arrested them on May 9.
The two women who were arrested are the manager of the Octopus Youth Organization and S4, a Octopus strike member, and in their 20s, according to the chairman of the Octopus Organization.
“It is believed that the manager was arrested when she returned to home from downtown. From there, with the reason on guest list checking, the soldiers came to the women’s dormitory in Hledan, where Comrade S4 lived, between 12:00 a.m. and 1:00 a.m., and then beat and arrested her. It is yet known where she was taken,” the chairperson of the Octopus Youth Organization told MPA.
He added that along with the two women, some family members and some of their friends have been arrested.
“There have been fourteen Octopus members arrested. Since we joined this organization and did such things, all of our members already know that such incidents may occur. We have all prepared in advance. No matter how brutally the terrorist military oppresses us, we will raise the Octopus flag hand in hand and continue marching with the people until the uprising succeeds,” he said.
A political activist from the western part of Bago Region commented that the military junta treats all those who oppose their sovereignty and interests as enemies.
“Not only armed and unarmed, treating the entire people who oppose them as enemies, and using force to arrest and beat people who are peacefully protesting without arms, is unacceptable in terms of human rights, and I strongly condemn it,” he said.
Monywa Strike Leader Wai Moe Naing, who was arrested by the military junta in 2021, was also sentenced to 20 years in prison a few days ago, and he has been sentenced to a total of 74 years in prison.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- May 9, 2024
- Event Description
Musician Chokdee “Alex” Rompruk and citizen reporter Waranya “Nui” Sae-ngo have been found guilty of royal defamation and given a suspended prison sentence of 4 years for singing two songs by the protest band Faiyen during a protest on 23 August 2022.
Waranya was arrested on 1 September 2022 and charged for singing two songs by Faiyen called “Lucky to have Thai People” and “Who killed King Rama 8?”, both of which are critical of the monarchy. She was also charged for livestreaming herself singing.
Chokdee reported to the police on 3 March 2022 after being contacted by the police and told that he was being charged because he was playing guitar while Waranya was singing.
The complaint against them was filed by Akkhrawut Kraisisombat, a member of the ultra-royalist group Vocational Students Protecting the Institution.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said on Thursday (9 May) that the Ratchadaphisek Criminal Court found Chokdee and Waranya guilty of royal defamation. It also found Waranya guilty of violation of the Computer Crimes Act.
Chokdee and Waranya were sentenced to 6 years in prison, reduced to 4 years because they confessed. The Court then suspended their sentence for 2 years on the grounds that they expressed remorse and promised not to defame the monarchy again. It noted that the two defendants were not protest leaders, are both working, and have a permanent residence, and took into consideration their family responsibilities and health issues.
Chokdee and Waranya will be subjected to a 1-year probation period, during which they have to report to a probation officer every 3 months. They are also required to perform at least 24 hours of community service.
Chokdee is facing another royal defamation charge for singing at another protest on 23 August 2022. Waranya is facing another royal defamation charge for livestreaming while activists conducted a poll on royal motorcades at the Siam Paragon shopping mall on 8 February 2022.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Artist, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 8, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Ho Chi Minh City on May 8 sentenced defendant Phan Tat Thanh, 38, to eight years in prison under Article 117 of the Penal Code for “making, storing, disseminating or propagating information, documents to oppose the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,” state media reported. The prosecutors claimed that Thanh’s activity “constitutes a serious crime which threatens national security” and that “it is necessary to impose a harsh punishment to deter similar activities.”
Phan Tat Thanh is a pro-democracy activist and an administrator of a dissident Facebook fan page called Nhật ký yêu nước (A Patriot's Diary). The Ho Chi Minh City Police Department detained him in July 2023 and charged him with violating Article 117 of the Penal Code. However, his family said Thanh had no longer engaged in pro-democracy activism but focused on building his business.
Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported that court officials allowed Thanh's parents into the courtroom. However, they rejected requests from foreign diplomatic missions in Vietnam, such as the Consulate General of Germany and the United States, to send representatives to observe the trial. Phan Tat Chi, Thanh’s father, said he was very frustrated since the sentence the court handed was higher than the recommendation of the Procuracy, which suggests between five to seven years of imprisonment.
Chi said that in his last words, Thanh pleaded not guilty and said that the investigators obtained his testimonies through forced confessions. However, the judge interrupted his speech and said, “This is not a forum for you to talk nonsense.”
Rights advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) on May 7 called on the Vietnamese government to immediately drop all charges against activist Phan Tat Thanh and to release him, according to a statement sent to VOA News Vietnamese language service.
“Peaceful advocacy for democracy and human rights is not a crime,” said Patricia Gossman, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch (HRW). “The Vietnamese government needs to immediately release Phan Tat Thanh and drop all charges against him.” Gossman called on the government to immediately release all those imprisoned or detained simply for expressing peaceful political views.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: social media activist arrested by the police
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- May 8, 2024
- Event Description
Political activist Panupong Jadnok has been sentenced to three years in prison on charges of violating the lese majeste law and Computer Crimes Act, and a warrant issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in court for sentencing.
The Criminal Court on Wednesday sentenced the 28-year-old to four years behind bars and reduced it to three years due to his cooperation during witness examination.
The defendant was found guilty for a message posted on Facebook on Nov 8, 2023, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
The court said the message was viewed as offensive to the monarchy and His Majesty the King and in breach of the computer law.
The joint leader of the Ratsadon group had denied the charges.
He was not present in court for the judgement and a bench warrant was then issued for his arrest.
The ruling was postponed from March 28 after the defendant first failed to appear in court for judgement.
Panupong is known online as Mike Rayong.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- May 8, 2024
- Event Description
Vietnam’s human rights activist and pro-democracy campaigner Nguyen Van Dung (aka Dung Aduku) was found dead on Hong River (Red River) a day ago, about two weeks after being detained and interrogated by police in his native province of Phu Tho.
In the morning of May 8, people in Ba Vi district, Hanoi, found a body of a man on Hong River’s bank and they informed the local authorities. Relatives of Dung, who went missing from April 27, came to see and recognized that the decomposing body belongs to him.
Dung, 47 years old, was reportedly chased by police since July last year on the same time that the police forces in Ho Chi Minh City detained local activist Phan Tat Thanh. Both were admins of the Facebook fanpage Nhật Ký Yêu Nước (Patriotic Diary) which has beeen advocating for multi-party democracy and human rights since 2010.
According to his family, he was detained by the security forces of the Phu Tho province’s Police Department on April 22 and held for interrogation until April 25.
After being released, he stayed at his mother’ house for one day, and on April 27, he took his mother’s motorbike and left without his ID nor money. He was said to leave a note for his mother and son containing a few words “Mamy, I am sorry! Son, I am sorry!” His son is just about one year old.
Dung’s death is unclear and the causes of his departure seem not to be unveiled as his family buried him on the same day.
Meanwhile, Phan Tat Thanh was convicted of “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 117 of the Criminal Code for seven posts on Patriotic Diary fanpage which was changed into Van Toan since 2021.
In a short trial in the morning of May 8, the 38-year-old activist was sentenced to eight years in prison and three years of probation.
He was detained on July 5, 2023 and officially charged with the allegation on July 13. During the first-instance hearing, Thanh claimed his innocence and accused police investigators of conducting torture against him during the detention and pre-trial imprisonment.
Thanh is the second admin of the Patriotic Dairy being imprisoned within two months. On March 26, former admin Nguyen Van Lam was also sentenced to eight years in prison by a court in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang on the same allegation.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- May 7, 2024
- Event Description
Morm Rithy, the vice-president of the Cambodian Labour Confederation (CLC), was arrested last night outside of the confederation’s offices, after he was convicted in absentia of incitement and discrediting judicial decisions and sentenced to 18 months in prison early Tuesday.
In addition to serving as the vice-president of CLC, Rithy, 35, is the head of the Cambodian Tourism and Service Workers’ Federation. His conviction relates to a 24 February 2022 Facebook video in which the union leader was critical of an arrest of a member of his federation at Jinbei Casino in Sihanoukville.
The verdict was announced without Rithy or his lawyer present, as his lawyer had requested a delay in the trial due to a scheduling conflict. The court found Rithy guilty of incitement under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code, as well as “Discrediting a Judicial Decision” under Article 523, and fined him two million riel (US$500).
Rithy’s imprisonment comes shortly before internal CLC leadership elections, which were scheduled to be held later this month.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 7, 2024
- Event Description
Jumarding, a resident of Anggana District, Kutai Kartanegara Regency, is suspected of experiencing criminalization by the PT SKN Coal Mining Company which operates in Kukar. Jumarding's protest asking for help from PT Sinar Kumala Naga (SKN) to stop land clearing activities on his land led to problems.
Jumarding was instead reported to the police on charges of obstructing the activities of a company carrying out mining activities, even though mediation had previously been carried out between Jumarding and the company but no agreement was found regarding land acquisition.
It is known that SKN submitted its report in March 2023, and will only begin the trial at the Tenggarong District Court around January 2024.
Jumarding was accused by the Public Prosecutor (JPU) of obstructing or disrupting the mining business activities of IUP, IUPK, IPR or SIPB holders who had fulfilled the requirements as intended in Article 70, Article 86F letter b and Article A 136 Paragraph (2).
So the Defendant was charged with violating as regulated and threatened with criminal penalties in Article 162 of Law No. 03 of 2020 concerning amendments to Law No. 4 of 2009 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining in conjunction with Article 162 of Law No. 6 of 2023 concerning the stipulation of Government regulations in lieu of Law Number 2 in 2022 concerning Job Creation becomes law.
Due to Defendant Jumarding's actions which were considered to be obstructing the company's activities, the prosecutor demanded that he be sentenced to 6 months in prison.
Now the fate of Defendant Jumarding is in the hands of the Panel of Judges, who will decide this case.
"The case is just waiting for the verdict, our client is being sued by the prosecutor for 6 months," said Jufri Musa SH together with Zaenal Muktaqin SHI and Makmur Ratno Jaya SH MH to journalists, Tuesday (7/5/2024).
The Defendant Jumarding's Legal Team revealed the facts of the trial which presented expert witnesses, that the defendant's actions which were deemed to be obstructing the company's activities by asking the field supervisor to stop land clearing operations on his land according to the expert witness, were not a criminal act as intended in Article 162.
Expert witness Ougy Dayyantara SHMH explained that actions that could be categorized as obstructing or disrupting mining business activities were if the defendant installed ropes, made tents or built huts on the haul road or ordered dump truck and excavtor operators to stop their activities.
"From everything that was explained by the expert witness at the trial, none of it was done by our client," said Zaenal Muttaqin accompanied by Jufri Musa and Makmur when holding a press conference at Cafe Yen's Delight Samarinda, Tuesday (7/5/2024) afternoon. Makmur added that in the well-known legal adage it is better to acquit a thousand guilty people than to punish one innocent person.
"We hope that the Panel of Judges in their decision will pay attention to aspects of evidence, in order to ensure that our client is innocent and can be acquitted. "said Makmur.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Agricultural business
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- May 6, 2024
- Event Description
Twenty-five youths set off on a 1,000-kilometer cycling campaign in conjunction with World Environment Day on June 5 to raise awareness on the protection of natural resources and prevention of deforestation.
The 20-day cycling campaign, which started on May 6 and ends on May 24, will see the young activists traveling from Ratanakiri province to Kep province to encourage the public to actively participate in environmental protection and climate change initiatives.
The campaigners have carried out activities, such as gatherings with communities, mangrove planting and an environmental forum in Phnom Penh. A public forum will be conducted at Freedom Park with campaigners riding public buses to create an awareness on the environment for the remaining days till June 5.
Slogans were chanted around five to 10 minutes by the cyclists to alert the public to protect natural resources as they arrived in urban areas of communes in Ratanakiri province. They also visited a local community at Stung Teng province’s Sesan district who have been affected by the hydroelectric dam.
Two days were spent in the Prey Lang area in Kampong Thom province where they observed continued cutting of trees and forest clearing in protected areas.
“We are very concerned because there is still continuous aggressive encroachment in Prey Lang [areas],” said Heng Kimhong, president of Cambodian Youth Network (CYN), who is leading the campaign.
He also expressed concern about the daily destruction of Cambodia’s natural resources and other forest offenses. “We saw a report which revealed the destruction of forests by using chemicals to operate [mining] business,” Kimhong added.
He noticed that the authorities are monitoring this year’s cycling campaign with pictures being taken when they reach a location, but the surveillance is not as strict as when they cycled in 2022.
He said the youths have a commitment to protect natural resources, although they face challenges such as financial constraints or when confronted by loggers.
One of the activists, Chan Sarin, 27, from Preah Vihear province, who joined the cycling campaign said deforestation is ongoing at Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary, with the authorities allegedly failing in their duty to prevent forest crimes.
“We have seen that authorities have not sufficiently implemented laws following the clearance of forest land. There are still cutting trees in Prey Lang forests,” Sarin said, adding that he hopes the public will join their effort to protect the forests.
In April, Mongabay reported new data published by the University of Maryland, which was made available via Global Forest Watch, a satellite monitoring platform, showing forest cover loss of up to 121,000 hectares in Cambodia in 2023.
Ministry of Environment spokesperson Khvay Atitya declined to comment specifically on the activists cycling campaign, but said a campaign to plant one million trees per year was announced on October 10, 2023, to increase forest cover.
“Promoting afforestation means planting more trees than logging to increase forest cover to 60% by 2050,” he said.
As of April 2024, the ministry distributed 878,110 seedlings for free to 205,843 farmers, Atitya shared, adding that the ministry will organize an exhibition to promote and distribute seedlings under the theme “Green Sprouts” starting July 10, 2024 in front of the ministry building in Phnom Penh.
In addition, the ministry has laid out significant measures to prevent deforestation and has carried out enforcement by “ending the culture of signing contracts and releasing perpetrators”, strengthening cooperation with military police forces and institutions in preventing the loss of natural resources.
- Impact of Event
- 25
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 6, 2024
- Event Description
Amnesty International Indonesia is urging the police to release a number of high-school students who were arrested for wearing Morning Star independence flag attributes during a parade in Nabire, Central Papua.
Amnesty International Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid said based on information they received, at least six students were arrested by police during a senior high-school (SMA) graduation celebration on Monday May 6.
"We call on the authorities to immediately free all the students who were detained for no apparent reason and carry out a fair investigation of teh acts of violence that allegedly occurred", said Hamid said in a written statement on Tuesday May 7.
According to Hamid, the arrests were accompanied by alleged acts of violence by police against students which is unacceptable. He said the expression of happiness through a peaceful procession is not a crime.
Hamid is also of the view that the symbol of the Morning Star represents a cultural expression, so it should not be a reason for the authorities to arrest anyone without due legal process.
"The police and the government should emulate Gus Dur's [former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid] approach towards indigenous Papuans. Cultural symbols such as the Morning Star flag were accommodated because it's a peaceful expression", he said.
Based on information obtained by Amnesty, the students celebrated their graduation by holding a parade on a main road while wearing their school uniforms.
Some of them drew motives of the Morning Star flag on their uniforms, which the authorities see as being a symbol of the Free Papua Organization (OPM).
A similar celebration was also carried out by SMA students in Dogiyai regency.
But the celebration in Nabire ended with the arrest of the students accompanied by alleged violence by the authorities. So far, the identity of the six arrested students is still unknown. The students were said to have been taken to the Nabire regional police station.
CNN Indonesia has contacted the head of Papua regional police public relations division, Senior Commissioner Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo, to ask about the arrests in Nabire, but as of this report being written he has not responded.
Earlier, Prabowo said the police had asked for clarification regarding the students' parade wearing the Morning Star attributes. "We have asked for clarification from the Dogiyai Polres [district police] related to photos of the event that were circulated on a WhatsApp group", said Prabowo on Monday.
Meanwhile, quoting from by Detik South Sulawesi, Dogiyai police chief Police Commander Sarraju said the long-march by the Dogiyai 2 State SMA students was indeed to celebrate their graduation. He claimed that the police who were on patrol in the area were prohibited from entering the school.
"Indeed (on Monday) morning at around 9.30 am our officer conducted patrols and monitored the announcement of 12th grade graduation at the Dogiyai SMU [State High School] 2 led by Second Police Inspector Agustinus Rirey and officers", he said on Tuesday.
"But when they wanted to enter the school grounds to appeal to students not to carry out the parade or long-march they were prevented by several students standing guard at the school gate", he added.
The police, he said, are looking into the actions of the Dogiyai 2 State SMA students who celebrated their graduation wearing clothes with pictures of the Morning Star flag. The school principal and four teachers have already been questioned over the incident.
"The Dogiyai police criminal investigation unit has conducted a clarification with the school principal and teachers, as many as four people, in relation with yesterday's incident", said Dogiyai district police chief Police Commander Sarajju.
Sarajju said that Dogiyai 2 State SMA school principle Fredy Yobee has apologised for the incident claiming that he and the teachers did not have prior knowledge of students' actions.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Minority rights defender, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Mongolia
- Initial Date
- May 5, 2024
- Event Description
The editor-in-chief of a Mongolian online media outlet was recently arrested, and is being prosecuted for investigating suspected misuse of public funds by the deputy prime minister. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the prosecutor's office to drop all charges against her, and urges the authorities to guarantee that journalists can effectively exercise their profession without intimidation.
The editor-in-chief of the Mongolian news website Tac.mn, Bayarmaa Ayurzana, was arrested on 5 May 2024 and detained for 48 hours, to be later charged with “threatening to disseminate information that might cause serious damage” to Mongolia’s deputy prime minister Amarsaikhan Sainbuyan. The journalist faces up to eight years in prison under article 17.6.1 of the Criminal Code; her trial date is yet to be announced.
Bayarmaa has published, between March 2021 and August 2022, a series of investigative articles shedding light on suspected embezzlement by the deputy prime minister, who is running in the upcoming elections to renew the Mongolian Parliament, at the end of June 2024. The journalist notably disclosed how the official allegedly diverted public funds aimed at modernising the capital city Ulaanbaatar's transportation infrastructure, and used his influence to stall the execution of a court decision obligating him to pay 4.7 million dollars in overdue penalties for the purchase of mines from an American citizen.
The police searched Bayarmaa’s home in January 2024, confiscating her phones, laptop as well as a notebook containing a flash drive, which has not yet been returned to the journalist. Ten days before the journalist's arrest, her investigative partner, lawyer G. Batbayar, was found apparently shot dead inside his vehicle. Batbayar had been working for eight years on legal cases opposing the alleged illegal activities of mining companies belonging to individuals from the deputy prime minister’s circles.
Mongolia, ranked 109th out of 180 territories in RSF’s 2024 World Press Freedom Index, has plummeted down 36 places since 2020. The press freedom situation is considered “difficult”, due to frequent abusive criminal proceedings against journalists under the guise of defamation, as well as a high concentration of media ownership in the hands of the economic and political elites.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- May 4, 2024
- Event Description
Nayapatrika national daily’s Jhapa based reporter Chiranjivi Ghimire received death threat for his reporting on May 4. Jhapa lies in Koshi Province of Nepal.
Reporter Ghimire shared with Freedom Forum that news with reporter Ghimire’s byline was published on web portal of the daily https://www.nayapatrikadaily.com/ on May 4. The news was about illegal extraction in the Mawa river with involvement of local representatives and the locals being threatened by contractors.
After publication of news, contractor Binod Thapa called Ghimire on mobile and threatened saying that he could do anything to Ghimire. Thapa also spoke foul during the call, according to Ghimire. Thereafter, reporter Ghimire filed a complaint at a local police office in Damak.
Reporter Ghimire further informed that Deputy Superintendent of Police Nisan Thapa has assured of calling the contractor to police station for further investigation. Ghimire added, “I am also discussing with fellow journalists and preparing to lodge a complaint against the contractor for his offensive behavior.”
Freedom Forum condemns the threat issued to reporter. The contractor should adopt legitimate ways to address his concern over news but threatening and speaking foul upon reporter is a gross violation of press freedom.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death threat, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Extractive industries
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 3, 2024
- Event Description
A human rights group reported cases of harassment and surveillance on Cavite-based student Paolo Tarra.
Karapatan Cavite reported that in February 2024, two people claiming to be members of the National Task Force to End Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), along with village officials from Trece Martires City, approached and intimidated Tarra’s parents. One of them introduced himself as JR and claimed that they were military reservists.
They then tried to get Tarra’s personal information and documents like birth certificate, diplomas and photos by continuously harassing and intimidating his parents.
Tarra is a student leader at De La Salle University-Dasmariñas (DLSU-D). He is coordinator of the Coalition of Concerned Lasallians (CCL) and a human rights worker in Cavite and other parts of the Southern Tagalog region.
On May 3, Tarra’s parents were again approached by people claiming to be from NTF-ELCAC, including a so-called“supervisor. They showed photos of Tarra participating in various activities and insisted on personally speaking to Tarra out of fear that he might “go to the mountains.” They said that on their next visit, they would like to speak to his parents again with forms and documents for them to sign.
In a statement posted by Karapatan-Cavite, they said that “the NTF-ELCAC’s intention is clear – to intimidate and deceive Tarra’s family through blatant red-tagging to justify their surveillance of him,” emphasizing that, “since the establishment of the Executive Order 70, the NTF-ELCAC has continuously proven that it does not truly serve the people. Instead, it aims to suppress the people and silence dissent and activism in the country amid the worsening crisis the Filipino people are facing.”
“It is worth noting that on May 8, the Supreme Court declared in a ruling that red-tagging poses a significant threat to the constitutional rights of Filipinos to life, liberty, and security,” the group added.
Prior to the high court’s decision, at least two United Nations special rapporteurs, Ian Fry and Irene Khan, called for the abolition of NTF ELCAC over its gross rights violations.
Karapatan Cavite called for an urgent investigation on Tarra’s case and asked the public to support their campaigns in defending human rights and holding the NTF-ELCAC accountable for its human rights violations.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- May 3, 2024
- Event Description
The Supreme Court this morning upheld the convictions of current and former casino union members, prolonging the incarceration of LRSU President Chhim Sithar.
The four-judge panel delivered its verdict the morning of 3 May upholding convictions for eight defendants. Their sentences range from two years to one year in prison, with Sithar being the only defendant currently serving her two-year sentence.
While Sithar is expected to be released later this year once she completes her sentence, today’s verdict puts five of the defendants at risk of immediate imprisonment. The five defendants — Chhim Sokhorn, Hay Sopheap, Kleang Soben, Sun Srey Pich, and Touch Sereymeas — were given 18-month prison sentences by the Phnom Penh Capital Court.
Two of the remaining defendants were given suspended sentences by a lower court.
The Phnom Penh Capital Court had charged nine defendants who were associated with the Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld (LRSU) and they were convicted in 2023. The convictions under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code are related to the union’s ongoing peaceful strike.
Eight defendants appealed the Phnom Penh court’s verdict, which was upheld by an appeal court last October.
Union members have been on strike since December 2021 against NagaWorld casino’s decision to implement mass layoffs in the middle of a pandemic. The firings included all of LRSU’s senior leadership and a large number of its members. Since the peaceful strike commenced in 2021, workers have been subjected to physical, verbal and sexual assault by local authorities and security personnel.
- Impact of Event
- 9
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of association, Labour rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 2, 2024
- Event Description
Human rights alliance KARAPATAN decried the recent freezing of the bank accounts of a multi-awarded development non-government organization based in Leyte province.
In an order dated May 2, 2024, the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) ordered the Tacloban branches of PSBank and Metropolitan Bank to freeze the accounts of the Leyte Center for Development Inc. (LCDe), as well as the personal bank accounts of its executive director and members of its staff.
LCDe is a 36-year old development NGO based in Palo, Leyte that has won numerous awards for assisting poor and marginalized communities in Eastern Visayas, especially in disaster preparedness and response. Its funds are sourced from private donors and at least seven countries, and it has partnered with 23 local government units in Samar and Leyte.
According to the AMLC, its freeze order stems from alleged findings that LCDe executive director Jazmin Jerusalem and her staff had been providing funds to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army (NPA). The AMLC also claimed that Jerusalem and the LCDe staff had earlier been designated as a “terrorist group/individual,” though no public information is available attesting to this designation.
“This is yet another example of the arbitrariness and anti-poor character of the Anti-Terrorism Council’s (ATC) designation of persons or groups as ‘terrorist’ or ‘terrorist financiers’,” said Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay. “This time, the ATC is focusing on LCDe which has long been providing much- needed assistance to the most impoverished rural communities of Samar and Leyte and had many times been acclaimed for it’s work, even by the Department of National Defense,” added Palabay.
“By freezing its accounts, the ATC has effectively sabotaged the LCDe ‘s projects in these communities and deprived them of the services that the LCDe has been providing,” she said.
“As in other cases of this nature,” said Palabay, “the AMLC based its unjust designation and freeze orders on the perjured testimonies of a so-called rebel returnee who claimed to have founded the LCDe in 2002, when the LCDe has, in fact, been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) since 1988.”
“This case also amply demonstrates the real dangers of red-tagging and how it swiftly leads to terror-tagging,” said Palabay.
“Jerusalem has long been the subject of red-tagging and harassment by state forces in the course of her activism and development work. She was falsely accused of involvement in a ‘communist’ purge in Leyte in the 1980s even if she was still a college student in Cebu at the time of the alleged incident. In 2018, she was among some 600 respondents in the government’s proscription case against the CPP-NPA, which was eventually dismissed by a Manila court. Now, she is accused of being a terrorist. Where will this end? In her unjust arrest and detention, forcible disappearance or extrajudicial killing?” she stated.
“Karapatan demands an end to terror-tagging. Government bodies like the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), ATC and AMLC whose reason for being is to surveil, profile, red- and terror-tag human rights defenders, development workers and political activists must be abolished, and the fascist and anti-people policies that engendered them, revoked,” concluded Palabay.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to access to funding, Right to protect reputation, Right to work
- HRD
- NGO, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- May 1, 2024
- Event Description
Six protesters were arrested by the police today during a protest action near the US Embassy in Manila.
The police barricaded the protesters in Kalaw but the protesters were able to pass through and march near the US Embassy. The police attempted to disperse the protesters, some of them were injured after they were hit with truncheons. Minutes later, the police used a water cannon against them.
During the program, activist leaders denounced the police dispersal and arrest of the six activists.
Gabriela Secretary General Clarice Palce said, “The police prevent us from getting near the US Embassy but American troops freely occupy our land and seas,” she said in Filipino, referring to the Balikatan exercise with the US.
- Impact of Event
- 7
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 1, 2024
- Event Description
A protest action commemorating International Labour Day or May Day in Makassar, the provincial capital of South Sulawesi, became heated when police tried to seize a mask with a picture of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on it that was being used by the demonstrators.
According to CNN Indonesia's observations in front of the South Sulawesi Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) building on Wednesday May 1, the protesters initially brought an effigy with a mask and a picture of Widodo.
Police officers who were on guard at the location tried to seize the Widodo mask and an argument ensued between police and the protesters.
"Are we violating [the law], is a photo of Jokowi a state symbol. The state symbols are the flag and the national emblem?", said a speaker during the action on Wednesday.
The incident did not last long however after Makassar metropolitan district police operational division head Assistant Superintendent Darminto allowed the protesters to continue the demonstration. "Please, continue the action", he said.
Two students arrested
At the same location, police arrested two students who they claimed were provocateurs.
This incident occurred when the Alauddin Makassar State Islamic University (UIN) Syari'ah and Law Student Alliance held a protest by setting fire to old tyres.
Police officers who were on duty in front of the South Sulawesi DPRD office immediately extinguished the fire, but they encountered resistance from the protesters resulting in two students being arrested.
A scuffle broke out between police and students but the officers managed to secure two students who were suspected of being provocateurs.
"They're my friends, Pak [Mr], why were we attacked. That's our field general, Pak", said one of the protesters at the action.
The two students were taken into the grounds of the DPRD offices.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 1, 2024
- Event Description
A demonstration commemorating International Labor Day or May Day, May 1 2024 at the Makassar State University Campus, South Sulawesi, ended in chaos. Local police officers arrested five people who were considered provocateurs.
"We have arrested five people, we have trained the others (dozens). We have handed them over to the campus," said Makassar Police Chief Commissioner Mokh Ngajib at the UNM Makassar campus, Wednesday evening (2/5/2024).
A demonstration commemorating International Labor Day or May Day, May 1 2024 at the Makassar State University Campus, South Sulawesi, ended in chaos. Local police officers arrested five people who were considered provocateurs.
The incident started when students burned used tires in front of Jalan Pendidikan, next to the local campus, when the demonstration time ended after sunset, then the authorities fired tear gas to break up the demonstration, so that the protest participants ran into the campus.
The officers then rushed into the campus to the student secretariat and immediately arrested dozens of students. At the same time, members found five people drinking traditional Ballo liquor and confiscated five bottles as evidence.
"It was (secured) after the action was over. There was a burning of tires there and we controlled it, then we entered here (campus). Coincidentally, there were several people burning (tyres). There was Ballo drinking (five people), but we have secured it. "The situation is safe, orderly and under control," he explained to journalists.
The five people who were suspected of consuming Ballo alcohol were detained by officers at the police station, while dozens of other students were gathered in the campus area to be given direction from the police and then handed over to the UNM campus for guidance.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- May 1, 2024
- Event Description
The May Day demonstration in front of the Central Java Provincial DPRD office was marred by chaos. Video was recorded of a police officer hitting a demonstrator on the arm with a baton. This person has been investigated internally by the police. The video uploaded by the X (Twitter) account @lbhsemarang shows the atmosphere when water cannons sprayed towards the crowd and the officers who were originally guarding the gate began to spread out. Then a man in black was approached by a number of police, one of whom hit a baton on the left arm of the man in black who then ran away.
"EMOTIONAL POLICE BREAKED CIVILIANS AT THE SEMARANG ACTION. At around 15.54 the police beat and dragged at least 3 people with bruises and bruises from baton blows on their necks and chests. What's cruel is that after the beating they actually celebrated. As if they were proud to express their emotions to the people," wrote @lbhsemarang in the video caption.
Semarang Police Chief, Commissioner Irwan Anwar, said that the May Day or Labor Day demonstration last Wednesday (1/5) was safe in the first wave. The second wave of chaos occurred at the front gate of the Central Java DPRD office.
"The first wave was conducive. Then in the second wave, there were other groups besides workers. The workers didn't like it so they were separated. One in front of the Governorate, one in front of the DPRD," explained Irwan at the Simpang Lima Libas Post, Thursday (2/5/2024).
The tension occurred twice. The initial tension was resolved and the crowd returned to giving speeches. However, during the second standoff, the police lowered water cannons to ward off the crowd. That's when a police officer started beating him even though he tried to stop him.
"During the implementation, at the end it was sprayed with a water cannon. Then one personnel from the Semarang Police Samapta came out of formation and was suspected of carrying out physical violence against the demonstrators," explained Irwan.
He explained that the member with the initials Aiptu R was now being examined. "An investigation is being carried out for further legal action," he stressed.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Apr 29, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Thailand today sentenced one of the kingdom’s leading democracy activists to a further two years imprisonment on royal insult charges.
It is the latest charge levelled against prominent human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa, who now faces more than 10 years in prison.
He is currently in jail after he was handed down a four-year sentence in January over three messages posted on Facebook in 2021, adding to the four years he was already serving for a prior lese majeste conviction.
Critics say the government has used the strict legislation to silence dissent, prosecuting scores under a tough law that protects King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his family.
The criminal court in Bangkok sentenced Arnon for two years and 20 days over his calls at a Harry Potter-themed rally in 2021 to amend Thailand’s royal defamation laws.
He was found guilty of four charges including violation of else majeste, defying the emergency decree, and using a loudspeaker without permission, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights said.
Thailand’s youth-led pro-democracy protests in 2020 saw tens of thousands of people take to the streets to make unprecedented calls to reform the monarchy.
Sentencing him, the criminal court also fined him 150 baht for use of the loudspeaker.
Arnon is among more than 150 activists who have been charged in recent years under lese majeste laws, often referred to as “112” after the relevant section of the criminal code.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Lawyer, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Apr 29, 2024
- Event Description
Two young Thai activists were today indicted on ‘groundless’ royal defamation and computer crime charges, Amnesty International has said.
Niraphorn “Bie” Onnkhaow, an Amnesty International Digital Rights Champion who recently engaged with the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, and Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul, a prominent protest leader featured in Amnesty International’s 2021 Write for Rights campaign, were today indicted under the charges of lèse-majesté and violating Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act.
“Today’s indictment shows that Thai authorities are continuing to weaponize spurious charges to silence critical voices of young people who want to speak about their human rights,” said Amnesty International’s Thailand Researcher Chanatip Tatiyakaroonwong.
“The decision to indict Bie only one month after she travelled to Geneva to share her experience as a young activist and human rights defender in Thailand sends a chilling message that speaking out on human rights violations will not be tolerated.”
On 12 March 2024 in Geneva, Bie spoke during the Inter-active Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders. She expressed concern over Thai authorities’ misuse of the criminal justice system to stifle freedom of expression and the use of digital surveillance against children and young human rights defenders in Thailand.
She also spoke at a side event on 13 March alongside other child and youth defenders to mark the release of a report by the Special Rapporteur, who had recognized the role of young human rights defenders in Thailand in peacefully protesting for reforms since 2020.
Charges against Bie and Rung were originally pressed in November 2021 but the public prosecutor only recently decided to proceed with the indictments.
Both Bie and Rung are part of the student-led protest group United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration (UFTD) and are vocal on freedom of expression, digital rights and gender equality.
Authorities allege that the two youth activists are administrators of the Facebook page of the UFTD. The charges against them stem from accusations that they made three posts on the page that were considered as being defamatory towards the monarchy.
Amnesty International has further documented that both women human rights defenders have been subjected to digital surveillance.
According to civil society-led forensic research, Bie and Rung were among 35 human rights defenders (HRDs), activists, academics and artists targeted with Pegasus, a highly invasive spyware developed by the Israeli cyber intelligence company NSO Group.
Bie’s mobile device was infected 14 times in 2021 – the highest number of infections documented among all the targeted individuals. Meanwhile, Rung’s device was infected four times in the same year.
Earlier in 2024, Bie was selected as one of Amnesty International’s Digital Rights Champions, a group of children and young leaders from across the globe with an interest and expertise in digital rights.
“This indictment decision will likely intensify the chilling effect that leaves Thai human rights defenders and activists afraid to speak up on human rights issues,” Chanatip Tatiyakaroonwong said.
“This is a reminder that Thailand needs to step up its efforts to meet its international human rights obligations, including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. We urge the Thai authorities to immediately drop charges against these activists.”
Thailand is currently seeking membership in the UN Human Rights Council, whose members have a responsibility to “uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment, Reprisal as Result of Communication
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Apr 29, 2024
- Event Description
Citizen journalist Fang Bin, who was jailed after filming from hospitals and funeral homes in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, is now homeless after being evicted from an apartment he rented just last month.
Fang, who was sentenced to three years' imprisonment at a secret trial, was released last year and ordered back to Wuhan when he traveled to Beijing.
Back in Wuhan, Fang stayed for a while in Qiaokou district, where he was frequently questioned by local police as part of China's "stability maintenance" system that targets dissidents and activists before they have a chance to do anything, prompting him to leave the area.
Before his detention on Feb. 1, 2020, Fang was among a number of high-profile bloggers who tried to report on the emerging and little-understood viral outbreak from Wuhan. He described the pandemic as a "man-made" disaster, calling on people to resist government "tyranny."
He sent reports from Wuhan No. 5 Hospital and a funeral home in Wuchang, part of the three-city conurbation that makes up Wuhan, where he watched staff move out eight dead bodies in the space of five minutes, suggesting the death toll was far higher than the officially reported figure.
Last month, Fang found an apartment in Huangpi district, further out of town, and signed a one-year lease with a private landlord surnamed Ren on April 15, paying a year's rent and service charges up front.
Three days later, local officials found out that he had moved into the area, and put pressure on the landlord to terminate his lease, he told RFA Mandarin in an interview on Wednesday.
The landlord told him he was being evicted, saying he couldn't take the kind of pressure he was being put under.
"When [the authorities] found out that I'd moved to Huangpi from Qiaokou, they were against me living in Huangpi," Fang said. "They put pressure on the landlord to evict me."
"They cut off my power and water supply ... They want me to leave," he said. "I paid the rent and the service charge."
Fang said unidentified people had used "every tactic they could think of" to put pressure on the landlord, who didn't dare to say where the pressure was coming from.
"He said, 'I can't stand this any more — I'll give you your money back,'" Fang said.
A 'stability maintenance' target
Repeated calls to the neighborhood committee at Shekoujie Sub-district Office rang unanswered during office hours on Wednesday.
Fang believes local officials there didn't want him living in the district because he's a "stability maintenance" target, whom they fear could cause trouble for them.
Fang left on April 27, then regained entry to the apartment the following day, only to have the water and power cut off on April 29, he said. Then someone tampered with the door lock, shutting Fang out of the apartment entirely.
"They think that my living here would be dangerous or troublesome for them, due to stability maintenance and so on," he said. "They think I'll cause them trouble, be another thing they are responsible for."
Fang went incommunicado after a Feb. 1, 2020, livestream from Wuhan healthcare facilities, and made a couple more videos in the days that followed about his interrogation by police, before falling silent for three years, with no news of his fate.
He was sentenced in secret by the Jiang'an District People's Court, which didn't share any legal documents with his family, then served his sentence in the Xiaojunshan former juvenile correction facility, activists said at the time.
Fang’s disappearance came a few days after the detention of another citizen journalist, Chen Qiushi, who had been interviewing people involved with the new mega hospitals being built at great speed in Wuhan.
Fellow citizen journalist Kcriss Li continued reporting from the scene for a few more weeks after that, until his dramatic, live-streamed chase by police on Feb. 26.
Lawyer-turned-reporter Zhang Zhan was detained and taken back to Shanghai, where there are ongoing concerns about her health in prison following months of on-off hunger strikes and forced feeding.
The U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China called for Fang's release in its annual report in November 2022, along with all those detained for reporting on the pandemic in China.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to housing
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Apr 29, 2024
- Event Description
The West Kazakhstan region's police department told RFE/RL on April 30 that journalist Raul Uporov, who extensively covered ongoing unprecedented floods in the city of Oral, had been charged with hooliganism.
A day earlier, Uporov said on Facebook that police were forcibly taking him to a police station to officially charge him in an administrative case.
He later said that the case against him was launched over his online video about a move by the local Emergencies Department to ban journalists from visiting areas affected by the floods and filing reports from such places.
The department explained the move by citing "safety precautions," while Uporov harshly criticized the move in a video he made about the floods, which was posted on Instagram. Police said they considered some of the words used by Uporov in the video "vulgar" and filed a hooliganism charge against the reporter.
Meanwhile, the situation around floods caused by abrupt warm weather that led to massive snowmelt in late March remains complicated in the western Atyrau region.
The Kazakh Emergencies Ministry said on April 30 that rescue teams from 10 regions and military personnel remain in the Atyrau region to monitor the water level in the Ural River every hour.
The ministry said a day earlier that, among those who were forced to flee the flooding, 38,521 people had returned home, adding that some of the rescue teams and military personnel deployed to help flood-affected regions had started leaving as water levels begin to recede.
In all, about 120,000 people, including 44,000 children, had been evacuated from areas affected by the floods.
According to the ministry, 17,000 of its rescue experts and military personnel, as well almost 2,000 equipped vehicles, have been involved in the rescue efforts in the flood-affected regions of the Central Asian nation's northern regions.
At least five people died in Kazakhstan during the floods, while at least four have been missing since early April.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Apr 25, 2024
- Event Description
Pakistani authorities must swiftly and impartially investigate death threats and online harassment targeting prominent television anchor Hamid Mir and ensure his safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
Mir, who hosts the flagship political show “Capital Talk” on Geo News and has survived at least two previous assassination attempts, told CPJ that he had received multiple death threats on social media and warnings that his life was in danger from two journalists familiar with the situation. Mir had reported the threats to the police last week in the capital, Islamabad, but they had yet to register a First Information Report needed to open an investigation.
On April 28, journalist Imran Riaz Khan posted on X, formerly Twitter, that he had been told that “preparations are being made to take actions” against Mir for his comments in support of freedom of speech in Pakistan, where journalists say they are often harassed and attacked by the military, political groups, and criminals.
Mir also told CPJ that he saw at least two people filming him last week while he was in his vehicle near his Islamabad home but they ran away when he approached them. Mir also reported this to the police.
On April 24, Mir filed a complaint to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which investigates cybercrimes, asking the agency to register a case against Jan Achakzai, the former information minister of southwestern Baluchistan province, for repeatedly insulting Mir on X, including calling him a “traitor.” In the complaint, reviewed by CPJ, Mir said that Achakzai’s “malicious attacks” undermined his credibility and jeopardized his safety.
On May 1, Achakzai said on X that he had been summoned to appear at the FIA’s Cybercrime Reporting Center on May 3. He criticized Mir for advocating for freedom of expression and for using his show to talk to separatists in Baluchistan.
“The threats and online hate campaign against one of Pakistan’s most prominent television anchors illustrate the severity of intimidation and pressure faced by journalists in Pakistan,” said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi . “Pakistani security agencies must immediately act against those trying to silence Hamid Mir and hold them accountable.”
Press freedom advocate
Mir has consistently advocated for press freedom in Pakistan.
On April 27, he filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court seeking the formation of a judicial commission to investigate the 2022 killing of Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya. In February, Mir spoke out on “Capital Talk” against the detention of journalists Imran Riaz Khan and Asad Ali Toor. In 2021, Mir was suspended from his talk show at Geo News after criticizing the military at a rally in support of Toor, who had been beaten up by unidentified men.
Mir has survived at least two attempted assassinations — in 2014 he was shot and in 2012 his driver found explosives planted under his car. In 2011, Mir publicly shared a death threat that he received after criticizing the military, judiciary, and intelligence services.
Since 1992, 64 journalists have been killed in connection with their work in Pakistan, CPJ data shows. Pakistan ranked 11th on CPJ’s 2023 Global Impunity Index, which ranks countries by how often the killers of journalists go unpunished.
On April 3, exiled Afghan journalist, Ahmad Hanayesh, was attacked by armed men in Islamabad. On March 14, Pakistani journalist Jam Saghir Ahmed Lar was shot dead in Pakistan’s central Punjab province.
CPJ’s text messages to information minister Attaullah Tarar and Syed Shahzad Nadeem Bukhari, deputy Inspector General of Police in Islamabad, requesting comment on the threats against Mir did not receive any replies.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death threat, Intimidation and Threats, Online Attack and Harassment, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 25, 2024
- Event Description
Duong Noi provincial police have resumed harassing Do Thi Thu, the wife of Trinh Ba Phuong. They sent her a summons on April 25 asking her to answer questions about her Facebook posts. Phuong recently told his wife that he is feverish and aching, to the point that he has to lie down all day and cover himself with a blanket in spite of the heatwave.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Apr 25, 2024
- Event Description
Writer Lin Nhyo Thway, aka Kyaw Thu Lwin, a writer from Gyobingauk Township, Thayarwaddy District, Bago Region, was arrested by military junta forces and has been out of contact with his family for a week.
Many military junta forces arrived at the home of Lin Nhyo Thway, Gyobingauk Township, Thaekone Ward, at night on April 25th and beat and arrested him, according to a person close to his family.
“He still hasn’t been contacted. It is still unknow where he was taken. They (family) are enquiring about him, and I don’t know why he was arrested,” he told MPA.
A 30-year-old woman who is close to the family explained that Lin Nhyo Thway was among those who had been involved in protesting against the military coup in the past and was returning home due to poor health while fleeing.
“His health was bad from the beginning, and he has a neurological disease. Also, he was regularly taking medicine, and now his family is concerned about his health after being arrested and beaten and has stopped taking medication,” she said.
A political activist in Gyobingauk said that he strongly condemns the use of force by the junta troops, dishonorable arrests of unarmed politicians, and interrogation practices that cut off contact with their families.
“Deliberate psychological attacks to make citizens lose interest in politics and fear, and actions to keep citizens away from politics, are the depraved behaviors of dictators,” he said.
At least 20 innocent people have died after being arrested by military junta forces since the military coup in other townships, including Gyobingauk Township in Thayarwaddy District.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 24, 2024
- Event Description
Two Vietnamese teachers were sentenced to prison on Wednesday in separate cases for criticizing authorities on social media under vague statutes often used to stifle dissent, people with knowledge of the situation said.
They are the latest examples of how Vietnam systematically suppresses basic freedoms and civil rights.
Duong Tuan Ngoc, 39, was sentenced by the Lam Dong People’s Court to seven years in prison and three years of probation under Article 117 of the country’s Penal Code for disseminating anti-state propaganda and “smearing senior leaders” on his social media accounts.
Retired teacher Nguyen Thu Hang, 62, received a two-year sentence under Article 331 for abusing democratic freedom that violated the interests of the state, rights and the legal interests of organizations and individuals.
She was convicted by the Dong Hoi People’s Court for using personal Facebook accounts to defame a judge who had presided over the land dispute case in which she was involved. She was also accused of streaming such video clips at various provincial offices.
Under the one-party rule of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the government severely restricts rights to freedom of expression, religion, association, peaceful assembly and movement, according to human rights and civil society groups.
“No one should be targeted for comments made on social media criticizing the government,” Josef Benedict, a researcher covering the Asia Pacific region for the CIVICUS Monitor, told RFA via text message.
Health videos
Ngoc, jailed since July 15, 2023, was an online teacher who specialized in macrobiotic diets, which aim to avoid foods containing toxins. He used to post articles and livestream videos about education, health and social issues on his Facebook and YouTube pages.
Police in Lam Dong province in southern Vietnam summoned him and his wife, Bui Thanh Diem Ngoc, on July 10, 2023, to question them about anonymous reports that Ngoc used his Facebook account to sell drugs.
But after Ngoc proved he was innocent, the police initiated a new probe on the charge of distributing anti-state propaganda and arrested him five days later.
Authorities accused the teacher of posting and sharing articles and videos on his Facebook and YouTube accounts that mocked, defamed and criticized the government and the party’s policies, and smeared senior party and state leaders, according to notices Lam Dong Police gave to Ngoc’s family.
A relative, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, told Radio Free Asia that Ngoc’s first-instance trial, which his wife and lawyer were allowed to attend, lasted about two hours on Wednesday morning.
“The defense lawyer did not make a defense case for him but requested sentence litigation, saying that he had a clean criminal record and had performed many charity activities before his arrest,” the person said.
During the trial, Ngoc admitted to having “spoken ill of government officials” but affirmed his wish of “a multiparty and pluralistic regime and an improved political regime,” said the relative.
It appears as though Ngoc will not appeal the verdict because he wants to serve his sentence as soon as possible so he can see his family again and resume work, the person said.
‘Lip service’
Benedict from CIVICUS said Ngoc’s arrest for peaceful expression online is the latest attempt by the Vietnamese regime to stifle peaceful expression, which contravenes the country’s international human rights obligations to protect fundamental freedoms.
He expressed concern over the government’s use of Article 117, which U.N. experts have found overly broad and aimed at silencing those who seek to exercise their right to freely express their views and share information with others.
“These actions are unbecoming of a member of the U.N. Human Rights Council and shows that the government has been only merely paying lip service to human rights and has no intention of respecting and protecting them,” Benedict said.
Vietnam is a current three-year member of the Human Right Council in Geneva, Switzerland, for the 2023-25 term and will seek reelection to the body for the 2026-28 term, despite widespread rights violations.
Ngoc is well-known on social media, and his Facebook page has more than 45,000 followers with an introductory description declaring: “I have rights as a citizen. You have rights as citizens. Citizens are the rightful owners of the country.”
He has two YouTube accounts, one of which features hundreds of videos on health, medicine and life in the countryside, and has nearly 95,000 followers. His other channel has about 39,000 followers and features videos discussing politics, corruption and poor leadership in Vietnam.
Ngoc is the eighth Vietnamese activist convicted this year, and the third to be charged with disseminating “anti-state propaganda” according to an RFA tally.
Retired teacher
Meanwhile, the retired teacher, Nguyen Thu Hang, was sentenced to two years in jail for abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on the interests of the state.
Hang, a resident of Dong Hoi city in Quang Binh province in central Vietnam, previously worked at a middle school in Dong Hoi, and was arrested on Nov. 27, 2023.
Dong Hoi police’s investigation agency said Hang disagreed with a verdict handed down in a civil trial about a land-use rights dispute and a request to annul a land-use rights certificate in which she was a plaintiff.
The agency said that from March to May 2023, Hang repeatedly used her Facebook account to livestream comments on Judge Nguyen Van Ngh, posting videos of herself speaking at the headquarters of Nam Ly ward, Dong Hoi’s Department of Education and Training, and Quang Binh province’s Inspection Department.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 24, 2024
- Event Description
A prominent reformer at Vietnam’s Labor Ministry was arrested last month and charged with leaking state secrets, state media reported Thursday.
Nguyen Van Binh, director general of the ministry’s legal department, was arrested on April 24 and prosecuted for “having deliberately disclosed State secrets” under Article 337 of Vietnam’s Penal Code, according to Voice of Vietnam.
The 88 Project, a nonprofit focusing on free speech in Vietnam, said Binh’s phone has been inactive since April 15.
While the state broadcaster did not give further details about the arrest, The 88 Project said Binh’s arrest is part of a larger effort to crack down on human rights.
“The arrest of Nguyen Van Binh is part of a new wave of repression sweeping through Vietnam,” the group said in a report issued days before state media confirmed the arrest.
The group noted that Binh had been pushing the government to ratify International Labour Organization Convention 87 — which gives workers the right to form unions.
Vietnam has only a single state-affiliated union, and foreign trade partners such as Canada have for years been pushing Hanoi to ratify the 75-year-old treaty.
Before his arrest, Binh, a lawyer and unionist who had worked at the ILO, had long pushed to improve worker rights.
The group linked Binh’s arrest to Directive 24, a purported leaked Communist Party document that calls for “prevent[ing] the establishment of labor organizations” and deeper control of state security. The text was made public in March by The 88 Project, which termed it a “war on human rights.”
News of Binh’s arrest came just one day after the U.S. Department of Commerce held a hearing to consider whether to recognize Vietnam's economy as a "market economy."
The upgrade would take Vietnam off a list of 12 countries, including North Korea and China, whose heavy state influence marks them as planned economies. Were it to be removed from the list, Vietnam would be able to access U.S. trade preferences.
U.S. steelmakers, among others, have opposed the move — as have advocacy groups who say the country has fallen far short of protecting workers’ rights. A decision is expected to be issued in late July.
At Wednesday’s virtual public hearing, lawyers representing Vietnam argued that the country met all six of the Commerce Department’s criteria, including the right to collective bargaining.
"Vietnam has demonstrated that its performance on these statutory factors is as good, or often better, than other countries that have previously been granted market economy status," said attorney Eric Emerson, Reuters reported.
But Human Rights watch disputed that claim, saying in a statement that Hanoi’s labor laws fell far short of international standards.
“It’s patently false to claim that Vietnamese workers can organize unions or that their wages are the result of free bargaining between labor and management,” said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.
“Not a single independent union exists in Vietnam and no working legal frameworks exist for unions to be created or for workers to enforce labor rights.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, Public Servant
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Apr 21, 2024
- Event Description
Several journalists were reportedly illegally detained and abused in Punjab’s Gujrat district while covering local by-elections on April 21. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), urge the local authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into and ensure journalists are able to work without fear of harassment and obstruction.
On April 21, journalists covering by-elections in Punjab’s northern Gujrat city were reportedly illegally detained by both police and individuals in plain clothes, with law enforcement assaulting the media workers and damaging their equipment.
Among those affected were reporter Bilal Sikander and cameraman Mushtaq Danyal from 92 News, as well as cameraman Raees Dilawar from GNN News, and several other local media professionals. The journalists were taken into custody for several hours.
Sikander claims the group was taken to a police station, where he and his colleagues were intimidated, with police allegedly threatening to cause them serious harm to ‘ensure their silence’ throughout the by-elections. Both Sikander and Danyal sustained serious injuries to their arms and backs.
The journalists were released following intervention by the PFUJ and local union leaders. According to the affected journalists, they were denied medical attention and no investigation into their allegations of abuse has begun.
The PFUJ said: “Who so ever is behind the illegal abduction of journalists must be brought to justice. The PFUJ announce to move the court to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the abductors for justice.”
The IFJ said: “The Government of Pakistan must take action to thoroughly investigate the alleged abductions and harassment of a group of journalists in Gujrat. Further measures must be introduced to safeguard the rights of media workers and ensure impunity is not permitted to run rife.”
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Apr 20, 2024
- Event Description
Karapatan denounces the violent demolitions of stores, farms and protest centers in Barangay Tartaria, Silang, Cavite by hired goons of Ayala Land Inc. and the Aguinaldo clan.
The disputed area in Barangay Tartaria is part of a 200-hectare landholding settled by farmers since the late 19th century and known for its fertile soil planted to crops such as coconut, coffee, pineapple and banana. The landholding is being claimed by the Aguinaldos, who, however, failed to produce any proof of ownership.
Initially approved as a land reform area under the government’s Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program, the National Housing Authority in collusion with the Aguinaldos succeeded in having the landholding exempted from CARP by having it reclassified as residential land. Since then, violent demolitions have been perpetrated by security guards hired by Ayala Land Inc. in cahoots with local police forces to make way for the construction of commercial establishments and a private subdivision in the area.
The latest attack was the burning at 2 a.m. of April 20, 2024 of the protest camp set up by the Samahan ng Magsasaka at Mamamayan ng Tartaria (SAMATA). The perpetrators were some 60 armed security goons from the notorious Jarton Security, the same agency hired by Ayala Land to demolish peasant communities in Hacienda Yulo in Canlubang, Calamba, Laguna.
Karapatan stands in solidarity with the peasant communities of Tartaria in their continuing struggle to defend their land and livelihoods from landgrabbers led by Ayala Land and the Aguinaldo clan.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Raid, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to property, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 19, 2024
- Event Description
Tran Huynh Duy Thuc told his brother Tran Huynh Duy Tan on April 26 that the quality of the food in prison has gone down while prices are going up. After a three day hunger strike (sometime before this date), he had lost 2kg and currently weighs about 63kg. Since April 18, he and several others allegedly have been kept in what is known as a “tiger cage,” described by Dang Dinh Bach’s wife in the preceding paragraph. On April 19, when Thuc refused to be put in the tiger cage, he alleges that the guards dragged him in anyway, tearing up his shirt and causing bruises on his neck. Thuc asks that international observers, especially UN special rapporteurs, come visit the prison conditions and assess Vietnam’s latest response to the UPR.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Torture, Use of Excessive Force, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to food, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Apr 18, 2024
- Event Description
The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has suspended and debarred student leader Ramadas Prini Sivanandan citing various incidents, including the screening of a banned BBC documentary on campus, organising controversial events, and participating in protests.
Ramadas, who is also the general secretary of the Progressive Student Federation (PSF), has been barred for two years from all TISS campuses, including Mumbai, Hyderabad, Guwahati and Tuljapur.
The notice issued by the administration on April 18 highlighted Ramadas’s involvement in activities deemed as violating the institute’s disciplinary rules. These activities include conducting a Bhagat Singh memorial lecture with contentious guest speakers, staging protests outside the director’s bungalow late at night with loud slogans, and promoting the screening of the documentary Ram Ke Naam via social media platforms.
A committee appointed to find out if Ramadas violated the institute’s code of conduct recommended that he be suspended and debarred. As per the suspension order, TISS has allowed Ramadas to appeal against the decision within 30 days.
Ramadas is currently pursuing a PhD from the School of Development Studies at the institute and is a vocal advocate for social justice.
The suspension has sparked outrage among student groups, with PSF condemning the administration’s actions as an attack on student rights and freedom of speech. “These actions of the administration clearly highlight a trend of active support of the ruling BJP government at the cost of the future of students coming from marginalised backgrounds,” the PSF said in a press statement.
“The administration has been taking rampant actions against any form of student dissent, especially following its takeover by the central government last year and the appointment of new leadership in all high-ranking administrative positions. The crackdown on student voices resisting the policies of the BJP government is very much evident in these actions,” the statement added.
The showcause notice issued to Ramadas on March 16 pointed out his participation as a speaker at the Parliament March organised at Jantar Mantar. The PSF said the march was organised under the banner of the United Students of India, a joint platform of 16 student organisations.
The press statement also pointed out that Ramadas is a meritorious student who had received the National Fellowship for Scheduled Castes from the Indian government’s Ministry of Social Justice for excelling in the UGC NET examination. “Ramadas has unequivocally defended student rights on campus and worked hard to build joint platforms and alliances among all student organisations,” the statement added
Responding to the controversy, a TISS official said that such activities of the students malign the image of the institute and subsequently impact placements too. “The institute therefore acted against Ramadas as per rules since he failed to follow the disciplinary code of conduct.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 18, 2024
- Event Description
Pham Thi Lan, wife of independent journalist Nguyen Tuong Thuy, was banned from leaving the country on April 18 when she arrived at the Moc Bai Border Gate in Tay Ninh Province to travel to Cambodia with her family. Lan confirmed the travel ban with the Voice of America (VOA) Vietnamese language service after she returned to Hanoi on April 19.
During livestreaming on her Facebook account, Lan said that the Vietnamese Border Police had said she received a travel ban due to “national security” reasons. “I'm an old woman who only cares for my grandchildren and does housework all day long. Does that have an impact on national security?” she asked.
VOA said Vietnam’s Immigration Department of the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to their request for comment. Journalist Nguyen Tuong Thuy, a member of the Independent Journalists Association of Vietnam (IJAVN), is serving an 11-year prison sentence on the charge of “distributing anti-state propaganda.” He is held at An Phuoc Prison, Binh Duong Province, more than 1,500 kilometers (932 miles) from his home in Hanoi.
The travel ban imposed on Pham Thi Lan occurred before Vietnam began its fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a universal human rights assessment process of the United Nations Human Rights Council, in early May in Geneva, Switzerland. In this process, various stakeholders will discuss and propose recommendations for Hanoi to improve its human rights record and uphold other international commitments regarding civil liberties, including the freedom of movement of its citizens.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Restrictions on Movement, Travel Restriction
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Apr 18, 2024
- Event Description
On 9 May 2024, human rights defender Ilham Mahmudi received a letter extending his detention after being arrested on 18 April 2024 by the Langkat Police. The letter arrived from the prosecutor's office agreeing to give him a 40-day extension of his detention.
Ilham Mahmudi is an environmental human rights defender based in the North Sumatra Province of Indonesia. Mahmudi works on the protection of mangrove forests in Langkat suffering from illegal logging by oil palm companies, including in his village. He was the head of Hamlet (Kadus) II Kwala Langkat Village, Tanjung Pura District, Langkat Regency in North Sumatra province, but was temporarily dismissed for allegedly refusing to sign a letter of sale and purchase of the village forest land that was planned to be converted into oil palm plantations.
On 18 April 2024, Ilham Mahmudi was arrested, forcibly pulled and put in the trunk of a car with his hands tied by the Langkat Resort Police without presenting any arrest warrant. According to the Langkat Police Criminal Investigation Unit Head, Ilham has been charged under Article 170 of the Criminal Code based on allegations of the destruction of houses and barracks in the Protected Forest Areas.
In February 2024, Ilham Mahmudi and the village’ residents reported to the authorities that an excavator unit was destroying the mangrove areas in protected forest areas recorded on the Inauguration Map of Protected Forest Areas in accordance with the Decree of the Minister of Environment and Forestry of the Republic of Indonesia Number SK.6609/MenLHK-PKTL/KUH/PLA/2/10/20221. So far, only one excavator unit has been successfully seized by the North Sumatra Regional Police ever since the villagers reported activities to the authorities. During this time, village residents reported having received threats by village collaborators of the oil palm companies aiming to develop oil palm plantation in Kwala Langkat mangrove forests. Allegedly, involved police officers have visited the village in different occasions, telling the villagers to stop opposing the environmental damage caused by the company’s operations.
On 31 January 2024, Ilham Mahmudi was temporarily suspended after being the head of Hamlet II for eight years as he opposed the land sale. The human rights defender was also threatened by an accomplice of the oil palm companies, and told "if you don't sign the land sale and purchase agreement, your position will end." Later in the afternoon, a letter of temporary suspension of Ilham was issued by the Head of Kwala Langkat Village. Ilham has not received a salary since January 2024. The land sale and purchase took place between residents and individuals allegedly part of a suspected land mafia network who wanted to control the village (customary) forest. The land being traded is approximately 5 hectares, but listed as approximately 7 hectares in the letter.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Apr 17, 2024
- Event Description
Kachin religious leader Dr. Hkalam Samson, who was released on Myanmar’s New Year amnesty on April 17, was reportedly re-arrested by the military junta.
According to a person close to the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC), Dr. Hkalam Samson was rearrested after the military arrived with a large force at the home of Dr. Hkalam Samson in Tapkone Ward, Myitkyina town, Kachin State, at about 11:00 p.m. on April 17.
“It’s right he was arrested. After he got home, the military came back and re-arrested him at night. The military force was quite large. It was at least 20 forces,” he said.
He added that it is not known for what reason Dr. Hkalam Samson was re-arrested and where he was being arrested until now.
Dr. Hkalam Samson was appointed as a special advisor to the Kachin Baptist Church (KBC) in 2022. He was arrested by the military junta at Mandalay International Airport on December 5, 2022. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison under section 17 (1) of the Unlawful Association Act and sections 505(a) and 52 (a) of the Penal Code.
After being imprisoned for more than a year in Myitkyina Prison, he was released on amnesty but was re-arrested by the military for no reason.
“Such re-arrests should not be done at all. It is lawlessness. The military does not easily release those who have strong convictions and those who can resist. If those do not negotiate with the military junta, they re-arrest and put those back in prison. I want to comment the military junta should not do this kind of inequality to political prisoners,” said Ko Thaik Tun Oo, a member of the Myanmar Political Prisoners Network.
Similarly, singer Saw Poe Kwar who was released on amnesty, was re-arrested at the entrance of Insein Prison, on November 15, 2022.
In addition, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), 110 political prisoners were re-arrested after release on amnesty nationwide in 2021.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Myanmar: community-based defender charged with terrorism
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Apr 16, 2024
- Event Description
At least 60 armed personnel have been reportedly building fences in the farmlands of barangay Tartaria, Silang, Cavite since April 16, prompting farmers to defend their community.
Regional peasant group Katipunan ng mga Samahang Magbubukid sa Timog Katagalugan (Kasama TK) said that the armed personnel came from Jarton Security, which it claimed was hired by the Ayala and Aguinaldo clans. Both families have been trying to seize the land for years, despite the pending decision of the Supreme Court (SC) and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) on land ownership.
Kasama TK said that the Philippine National Police (PNP) intervened, but only to assist Jarton Security.
In response to the persistence of security personnel, the Tartaria farmers built a fence to protect their farm, only to be demolished by the armed personnel. At least one farmer was injured in the incident.
The local group of farmers and residents Samahan ng Magsasaka at Mamamayan ng Tartaria (Samata) said that they tried to ask the armed personnel through a document to leave in peace. However, they refused to sign.
“Ito ay nangangahulugan lamang na hindi sila seryoso at patuloy pa rin yung gagawin nila na pagbabakod sa mga hindi surrender. Kaya nagkampohan na kami sa lupa, andito pa rin yung mga tao, at ang tindig namin ay hindi kami aalis dito at patuloy kaming magbabantay,” a representative from SAMATA said.
(This means that they are not serious and they will be persistent in fencing off our lands. So we are camping here and we continue to stand our ground that we will not leave. We continue to watch them.)
This incident is not new to the farmers of Tartaria. In a 2021 report by Bulatlat, farmers and residents were struggling against land-grabbing for decades. They have also successfully formed barricades and resisted the attempts to demolish their homes.
Both Kasama TK and SAMATA recorded a separate incident of harassment by Jarton Security on April 3. They also reported that there were incidents of illegal intrusion into their homes.
Human rights group Karapatan Laguna said that the ongoing harassment and planned change in land use are blatant violations of the human rights of Tartaria farmers and residents.
Initially, the DAR approved 137 farmer-beneficiaries of Tartaria under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) of former President Corazon Aquino. However, the Aguinaldo family contested the approval and later submitted appeals which were denied. It was only during the time of President Fidel V. Ramos that the decision was reversed, declaring the land as exempted from distribution.
“The slow action of the DAR in processing such cases of farmer struggles has also been condemned, allowing numerous incidents of harassment, intimidation, and threats against residents and farmers. The involvement of the PNP in harassment is unwarranted as it falls outside their jurisdiction,” Karapatan Laguna added.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to property
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Apr 16, 2024
- Event Description
Police have arrested and detained four Tibetans who protested Chinese authorities’ seizure of pasture land owned by Tibetans in the Tibet Autonomous Region, three sources inside Tibet told Radio Free Asia.
On April 10, residents of Taktsa village in Luonixiang rural township in Markham county in Chamdo, or Changdu in Chinese, clashed with authorities after they appealed against the land grab and demanded compensation, said the sources, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.
In 2023, a Chinese county official illegally sold the pasture land to businessmen without the knowledge of locals and without providing them any compensation, the sources said.
The Tibetans had no knowledge that their land had been seized illegally until this April when the businessmen sent people to clear it. The Tibetans then confronted authorities, demanding payment.
Police arrested and detained four of the Tibetans, and slapped and beat many others at the scene, said one of the sources.
There were no immediate details about the status of the four or the charges against them, and it is not clear for what purpose the seized land will be used.
Despite repeated attempts, RFA did not receive any immediate response to calls to Markham county authorities and the local police station.
Chinese authorities in the Tibet Autonomous Region and in Tibetan-populated areas of nearby Chinese provinces often ignore residents’ concerns about mining and land grabs by local officials, who routinely rely on force to subdue those who complain or protest, according to human rights groups.
Over the past few years, there have been several reports of similar land grabs that have taken place in Chamdo, a resource-rich area in eastern Tibet.
Most of the land grabs have been related to mining, including copper, gold and lithium, and development projects that China has undertaken in the areas. In some cases, Tibetans have been forced from their homes.
Thumbs up
Videos obtained by RFA show over a dozen Tibetans pleading before Chinese police as they raised both their thumbs up — a Tibetan gesture of a request to show mercy.
The gesture was also seen being made by Buddhist monks and Tibetans residents during February protests in Dege county, southwestern China’s Sichuan province, in an appeal to Chinese officials to stop a planned dam project on the Drichu River.
In the videos from Markham county, young and elderly Tibetans kneel before police clad in black, and wail, while others pull and tug at the authorities to heed their pleas.
The land in question is used by about 25 Tibetan families to graze their animals and for recreation purposes, the sources said.
Chinese authorities have arrested the official who had colluded with the businessmen to illegally seize the land without compensating the Tibetans, charging him with corruption, said one of the sources.
Now, the residents are demanding compensation for the land that had been occupied, he added.
Chinese police have forbidden the Tibetans from sharing information about the incident with people outside China, the sources said.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Apr 16, 2024
- Event Description
Tibetans who protested the seizure of their pasture land by Chinese authorities in Markham county in April have been subjected to a series of political education sessions after they were accused of protesting for political reasons, two sources with knowledge of the situation said.
Area officials are also preventing the Tibetans from petitioning higher authorities in Chamdo, a city in the eastern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region, for fair compensation for their land, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
County officials have misled higher-ranking officials in Chamdo and in Tibet’s capital Lhasa into thinking that the protest by Tibetan residents was political in nature, rather than an appeal against the land grab, said the first source.
“[They] have used that as an excuse to organize a series of political education sessions in the area,” he said.
In early April, 25 Tibetan families from Taktsa village in Markham county learned their land had been sold without their knowledge to businessmen by county officials, when the new owners sent people to clear it.
Four Tibetans were arrested April 10 for protesting the land grab and later released on April 16, but they were beaten while in detention.
Chinese authorities in the Tibet Autonomous Region and in Tibetan-populated areas of nearby Chinese provinces often ignore residents’ concerns about mining and land grabs by local officials, who routinely rely on force to subdue those who complain or protest, according to human rights groups.
Rejecting low compensation
In April, the Tibetans rejected 3,000 yuan (US$415) in individual compensation that was belatedly offered to them by Chinese authorities, saying the amount was too low for the pasture land that had been sold by Chinese county officials to businessmen in 2023.
Since then, the Tibetans have had to attend a series of political education sessions, with more than 30 Chinese county officials from various departments visiting the area over the past month, said the two sources.
Chinese authorities in Markham county also announced a reward for information that could help them identify an individual who shared news of the land grab protest with outside parties, the sources said.
“This is the first time we have seen such rigorous political education sessions and monitoring in the area, with so many levels of officials visiting the place to conduct group political education sessions and going door-to-door,” said the second source.
On April 16, the Luoni Township Party Committee, where the village is located, organized a Chinese Communist Party discipline study and political education meeting with over 30 Chinese officials. They included members of the township party committee, all party members of directly affiliated branches, at-home cadres, temple management committees, police stations, health centers and school administrators.
“Following the meeting, members of the Chinese Working Affairs Committee visited each family in their homes to provide political education,” the second source said.
They told the Tibetans that the Chinese government would address any problems they faced, but that they couldn’t share information with people living outside Tibet because it would compromise national dignity and reflect poorly on the Chinese Communist Party, thereby constituting a criminal act, the second source said.
Police monitoring
Since the protest, around 10 policemen have been deployed to patrol the area day and night to monitor the Tibetans’ activities, the sources said.
“Instead of addressing the core problem, Chinese authorities are using political maneuvers and have prevented local Tibetans from appealing their case in Chamdo,” said the first source.
The first source said the land taken from the Tibetans is 1.5 kilometers (one mile) long and covers an area of 1 square kilometer (0.4 square miles), and is worth about 5 million yuan, or US$692,000.
Officials told the residents to accept their offer of 3,000 Chinese yuan each without protest or face imprisonment for noncompliance.
The Chinese police and Markham county officials are now threatening the Tibetans by labeling the protests as political in nature and intimidating locals about likely consequences, given that protests of a political nature amount to a criminal offense, the sources said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Apr 15, 2024
- Event Description
A Uyghur woman was arrested last month after she posted a video on social media complaining that authorities had seized her land in Xinjiang, leaving her without means to eke out a living, the security director of her village said.
The woman, identified only as Belikiz, 35, from Astana village in Kumul, called Hami in Chinese, said authorities confiscated her land at the end of 2023 to implement a policy of “concentrating lands in the hands of authorities.”
She expressed despair over the Chinese government’s unwillingness to resolve the issue in the video on Douyin, a Chinese video-sharing platform.
“Even if the land was allocated to us by the government, we’ve invested 3-4 years cultivating it,” she says in the video. “Why won’t the government advocate for us farmers? If you doubt my words, just look at those machines tearing up our farmlands.”
“How are we supposed to sustain our livelihoods and send our children to school?” she asked. “Isn’t there a country that can support us? Is there no organization we can turn to for help?”
‘Systematic confiscation’
For years, authorities in Xinjiang have seized land and property from Uyghurs to make way for development projects run by Han Chinese migrants. Those who lose land often have little or no recourse for adequate compensation or justice because of high levels of collusion between local officials and developers.
Uyghurs complain that the migrants have displaced them from their traditional homeland and deprived them of financial opportunities under harsh Beijing rule.
Police quickly deleted the video from Douyin not long after it was uploaded and arrested Belikiz on April 15, said Astana village’s security director, who declined to be named out of fear of retribution.
He said he learned of the woman’s arrest about 20 days later and that authorities apprehended her because of a complaint letter she previously submitted to the government about the issue.
It was unclear whether her arrest was directly related to the video addressing the land seizure, he added.
“The systematic confiscation of land from Uyghurs has been an ongoing issue for a long time,” said a Uyghur former police officer who now lives Sweden. “We owe our insight into these injustices to the courage of individuals who bravely share their stories through videos like these.”
‘Keep tormenting us’
Belikiz initially set up two bookstores after graduating from high school because she failed the national college entrance examination, the village security director said.
But when business endeavors were unsuccessful, she turned to farming, he said.
Belikiz had farmed on about 7-8 mu of land for the past 1-2 years. The Chinese unit of land measurement varies with location but is commonly equal to 0.165 acre, so she had less than two acres.
After area officials confiscated the land, which constituted all her capital, Belikiz recorded the video on Douyin about the issues she and other Uyghur farmers in Kumul and the rest of Xinjiang faced.
“Are they going to keep tormenting us just because the government is powerful?” she asked. “Wouldn't it be better if we were spared from all this suffering?”
The Uyghur former police officer who lives in Sweden noted that no land is safe from seizure.
“The Chinese government can seize land from individuals at any given moment, under any pretext,” he said, declining to be named for fear of retaliation.
Individuals cannot privately own land and natural resources, according to China’s constitution and land laws. The Constitution specifies that land in urban areas must be owned by the state, while land in rural and suburban areas must be owned by the state or by local collectives.
“The video depicting the anguish of a farmer woman in Kumul following the loss of her land is a stark reminder of this reality,” the former policeman said.
Other locations
Similar land-grab incidents also have occurred in Ghulja, a county-level city in northwestern Xinjiang, called Yining in Chinese.
Since the 2000s, Chinese authorities in Xinjiang have carried out “development measures” by “concentrating lands in the hands of authorities.”
The policy allowed Han Chinese migrants to seize Uyghur farmland and force Uyghurs to work as laborers on the same plots.
“Regardless of the reason, openly voicing complaints against the Chinese oppressors or making any form of complaint is considered a violation of the law,” the former policeman said.
“While [Belikiz] managed to upload a video discussing her hardships, millions of others in our homeland cannot,” he said.
Zumrat Dawut, a former Uyghur internment camp detainee who was forcibly sterilized but now lives in the United States, said she managed to downloaded Belikiz’s video to her phone even though it had been removed from Douyin.
Dawut resorted to alternative methods to download the video and then uploaded it to Facebook so more people could view it.
“Reporters and media outlets following my feed inquired about the woman in the video, asking why she was crying and what had occurred,” Dawut told Radio Free Asia.
She expressed admiration for Belikiz’s courage, but voiced concern about potential consequences she might face.
Dawut urged human rights groups and Uyghur advocacy groups to monitor Belikiz’s situation and the repercussions she might face for speaking out.
“This woman has taken a tremendous risk to raise her voice,” she said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Land rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 13, 2024
- Event Description
Nghe An Provincial Prison No. 6 did not allow Bui Van Thuan, a prisoner of conscience from Thanh Hoa Province, to talk to his family in the Muong language when they visited him in August 2023 and February 2024. The prison officers required them to communicate in the Vietnamese language. Thuan, 43, a Muong ethnic minority, is serving a six-year sentence on the conviction of “distribution of anti-state propaganda.” The Muong community in Vietnam is located in a mountainous area southwest of Hanoi.
Thuan’s wife, Trinh Thi Nhung, told RFA that her husband, his parents, and younger brother had difficulty communicating in Vietnamese instead of their mother language. The correctional officers threatened to file a report against Thuan when they occasionally used Muong words for sentences they found hard to express in Vietnamese. Nhung added that Thuan had recently been transferred to the prison’s Camp No. 1, which has harsher living conditions.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Apr 10, 2024
- Event Description
The family of the missing veteran labor organizer in Bukidnon intensified its search efforts together with trade unions and rights groups.
William Lariosa, 63, a veteran labor organizer in the sugar and pineapple plantations of Bukidnon, has been missing since April 10. He was last seen in Barangay Butong, Quezon, Bukidnon. Eyewitnesses said that elements of the 48th Infantry Battalion forcibly arrested Lariosa.
His family, together with the union leaders and paralegals of Kilusang Mayo Uno – Southern Mindanao Region (KMU-SMR), Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR), Anakbayan Southern Mindanao, and Kabataan Partylist, expanded their search to Quezon and Maramag, Bukidnon.
The family and other members under the banner of Surface William Lariosa Network said that they filed blotter reports in Butong Barangay Hall and Quezon Municipal Police Station. They also talked to the 48th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army and residents in the nearby communities.
The search team also went to the 1003rd Infantry Battalion in Barangay Malagos, Baguio District, Davao City on May 14, after receiving information that Lariosa was being held there.
However, the search team noticed that there were inconsistencies in the “Desaparecidos Form” signed by the military officer. The officer who introduced himself as Cpt. Labasa initially signed the form using the name Dexter Ramos. When asked for a duplicate copy, the officer returned the document with a different signature, under the name of Jhony Tumbayan, who was the camp’s security guard.
“This clear blatant usage of fake identity shows the 1003rd’s disregard for legal protocols and their lack of respect for the rule of law. Despite the persistent efforts of the family and the paralegal team, it is evident that state authorities are unwilling to engage or assist in locating Lariosa’s whereabouts,” Surface William Lariosa said.
It has been more than a month since his disappearance but Lariosa remains missing. The effect of his abduction rippled down to other organizers in the Southern Mindanao region. The United Nations (UN) has identified that enforced disappearance is a frequently used strategy to spread terror, not only to the close relatives of the disappeared but also to their communities.
CTUHR documented that Lariosa’s disappearance was followed by uninvited visits by men identifying themselves as military, to the homes of KMU regional labor leaders Paul John Dizon, Carl Anthony Olalo, and Melodina Gumanoy of the Nagkahiusang Kababaye ang Mamumuo sa Davao de Oro or NKMDDO.
“The labor activists were told to surrender to the government or they will face certain consequences. What is there to surrender, when labor activists are only calling for higher wages to lift workers out of poverty?” said CTUHR in a statement.
They also documented that three days after International Labor Day, red-tagging paraphernalia were seen in Davao City, targeting KMU. However, the pattern of harassment did not stop among their ranks.
Other staff members of the labor non-government organization Nonoy Librado Development Foundation Inc. (NLDFI) were also visited by individuals identifying themselves as military.
“Former NLDFI executive director Emma Ricaforte was interrogated by agents of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), and shown a list of labor activists who will supposedly be sought out for a meeting,” CTUHR added.
Last May 10, friends, families, and supporters of William Lariosa gathered for a Holy Mass and solidarity program to mark the first month of his enforced disappearance. The network vows to continue searching for Lariosa and urges the government for his immediate surfacing.
“We are calling for the immediate surfacing of William and his safe return to us, free from physical and psychological torture,” the network said.
Meanwhile, KMU released an appeal for concerted action and solidarity from the international community, human rights groups, labor unions, and concerned individuals.
“Only through unified and sustained action can we secure justice for William Lariosa, protect labor rights activists facing escalating attacks, and uphold democratic rights and human dignity for all in the Philippines,” KMU ended in their appeal.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Suspected state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Apr 8, 2024
- Event Description
Just a few days after the removal of Bolta Hindustan’s channel from YouTube on April 4, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued a directive for the removal of National Dastak’s YouTube channel as well.
The National Dastak took to X, formerly Twitter, and spoke on the decision. The notice by Google, which was sent to the media platform on Monday, April 8, stated that it could not specify why the channel was being banned as the government had declared that reason confidential. The media platform posted in response:
“नेशनल दस्तक को बंद करवाना चाहती है सरकार।। 3 अप्रैल को यूट्यूब ने नोटिस भेजा था।। आर्टिकल 19 को भी नोटिस है। ।।आचार संहिता में ये सब हो रहा है।। लाखों अखबार टीवी न्यूज चैनल चल रहे। बहुजनों के नेशनल दस्तक से इतना डर।”
(The government wants to shut down National Dastak. YouTube sent a notice on April 3, a notice was also sent to Article 19 . All this is happening under the Model Code of Conduct. Lakhs of newspapers and TV news channels are running. Why are they so afraid of Bahujan people’s National Dastak?)
The ban has been notified in adherence to the with Rule 15 (2) of the Information Technology Rules, 2021 with Section 69A of the Information Technology Act 2000. with Section 69A of the Information Technology Act 2000.
National Dastak describes itself as ‘online media’ and a voice of the oppressed, including Dalits, Adivasis, minorities, backwards, women, and farmers. The YouTube channel had over 9 million subscribers. This has raised questions about why the government, without providing an explanation, is targeting and censoring independent media which are run by and report issues of the marginalised.
Bolta Hindustan’s founder, Haseen Rahmani, had spoken to SabrangIndia earlier and stated how the “messenger is being punished’. The media platform’s channel was similarly banned without providing any reason due to confidentiality of the notice by the government. He further elaborated, saying the media platform will take the legal route if necessary, “Those who give hate speech are free, but if you do a story on these givers of hate speech, then you are punished.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Censorship, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Internet freedom, Media freedom, Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- India: independent media faces YouTube ban
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Apr 8, 2024
- Event Description
Rights activists and environmentalists have expressed dismay over slapping terror charges on two Filipino activists, terming it an example of muzzling dissent and crackdown on rights-based activism in the country.
Fritz Jay Labiano and Adrian Paul Tagle have been charged with violating the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012, media reports say.
Labiano is the coordinator of the rights group Kabataan Partylist in Quezon province, and Tagle is the coordinator of Tanggol Quezon, an advocacy group. If convicted, they face life imprisonment.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to work
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 8, 2024
- Event Description
Hoang Duc Binh reported to his family that he was put in leg shackles for 10 days, from March 26 to April 5, by warden Nguyen Ngoc Thach at An Diem Prison in Quang Nam Province. He also has been prohibited from receiving supplies or calls from his family for three months, as well as family visits for two months. According to Binh’s family, Binh was punished for protesting against unfair treatment by the warden, who did not let him have several items sent by his family and cited him for “not following orders by prison authorities.” While Binh was in shackles, guards allegedly confiscated his personal belongings, as well as those of other political prisoners. At least four political prisoners went on a hunger strike to protest the mistreatment: Hoang Duc Binh, Trinh Ba Phuong, Phan Cong Hai and Nguyen Thai Binh. As a result, all four were put in “disciplinary cells” and were not allowed to go out to the yard or communicate with other inmates.
In a letter home dated April 8, Trinh Ba Phuong corroborated Hoang Duc Binh’s account of being disciplined and the group’s hunger strike. Phuong’s wife, Do Thi Thu, was able to visit him on April 21 and reported that Phuong and several other political prisoners had been locked in their cells since April 8 with everything passed in and out through a small opening. Phuong told Thu it was a form of psychological torture. Phuong also said that Binh is suffering from back pain, abdominal pain, loss of smell, and chest pain. Binh did ask prison authorities for medication for his chest pain but so far has reportedly not received any. Thu also reported that for the past year, Phuong has not been eating any food made by the prison; at one point, the food caused him severe diarrhea and stomach problems. Phuong also said the water source at An Diem is highly polluted.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Apr 7, 2024
- Event Description
Koet Saray, President of the Khmer Student Intelligent League Association (KSILA), was today sent to pre-trial detention at Correctional Centre 1 prison by an investigating judge at the at Phnom Penh Capital Court following charges of “committing a misdemeanour after sentencing for a misdemeanour” and “incitement to commit a felony” under Articles 88, 494, and 495 of the Criminal Code. The charges relate to ongoing land conflicts in Preah Vihear province.
On 6 April at around 3:30pm, police officers confirmed that Saray had been transported to the Phnom Penh Capital Court from the Phnom Penh Police Commissariat, where he had been held overnight following his arrest on 5 April at around 4:00pm by approximately 10 mixed uniformed and plainclothes police officers outside of KSILA’s office in Phnom Penh. Saray’s arrest followed an order issued by the Office of the Prosecutor at Phnom Penh Capital Court on 5 April to bring Saray to Phnom Penh Capital Police for questioning on “incitement to cause serious chaos to social security”.
One monk and around a dozen individuals from various youth groups and civil society organisations had been present at the Phnom Penh Police Commissariat on 6 April to monitor the situation. A few plainclothes police officers had also been deployed nearby, where they took photographs and videos and prevented human rights defenders from bringing food to Saray.
In 2023, the Supreme Court upheld incitement convictions against Saray and nine other activists in relation to peaceful gatherings calling for the release of then-imprisoned union leader Rong Chhun. The lower court had sentenced Saray in October 2021 to 20 months’ imprisonment with six months of his sentence suspended for a period of two years, and fined him 2 million riel (US$500).
- Impact of Event
- 12
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to food, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- NGO staff, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: student leader arrested, investigated
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Apr 6, 2024
- Event Description
Journalist Habib-ur-Rahman Taseer from Radio Azadi in southeastern Ghazni has been detained in a detention center by the Taliban intelligence since 12 days ago and has now been transferred to the prison of the province. The Afghanistan Journalists Center expresses serious concern about Taseer's continued detention and demands his immediate and unconditional release.
A journalist in Ghazni province, who spoke to AFJC on the condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation by local Taliban officials, revealed that Habib-ur-Rahman Taseer was arrested on April 6 by the intelligence department of the province. Taseer was reportedly detained for preparing local reports for Radio Azadi, with his smartphone seized and its contents checked without his consent.
Radio Azadi has not officially responded to the situation. Another source in Ghazni provincne told AFJC that Taseer had faced pressure before his arrest, including being removed from a joint WhatsApp group of journalists and local officials. Efforts to secure Taseer's release have been unsuccessful, leading to his transfer from the intelligence detention center to the provincial prison. His case is expected to be sent to court.
Radio Azadi, based in Prague, Czech Republic, produces and broadcasts programs for Afghanistan. In December 2022, the FM frequency of Radio Azadi and Voice of America, both US government-supported outlets, were cut by Taliban order. Two months later, the websites of these outlets were also closed in Afghanistan, with the Taliban accusing them of spreading propaganda against the group.
AFJC calls on local Taliban officials in Ghazni province to release Habib-ur-Rahman Taseer promptly and unconditionally, emphasizing that journalists should be able to carry out their work without limitations or threats and should be supported.
Currently, three journalists are in custody in the country. AFJC data shows that at least 59 journalists and media workers were arrested in the last solar year alone. The majority of these cases involved violations of Taliban media directives, which contradict the country's media laws. Failure to adhere to these directives is deemed criminal.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
Koet Saray, President of the Khmer Student Intelligent League Association (KSILA), was today sent to pre-trial detention at Correctional Centre 1 prison by an investigating judge at the at Phnom Penh Capital Court following charges of “committing a misdemeanour after sentencing for a misdemeanour” and “incitement to commit a felony” under Articles 88, 494, and 495 of the Criminal Code. The charges relate to ongoing land conflicts in Preah Vihear province.
On 6 April at around 3:30pm, police officers confirmed that Saray had been transported to the Phnom Penh Capital Court from the Phnom Penh Police Commissariat, where he had been held overnight following his arrest on 5 April at around 4:00pm by approximately 10 mixed uniformed and plainclothes police officers outside of KSILA’s office in Phnom Penh. Saray’s arrest followed an order issued by the Office of the Prosecutor at Phnom Penh Capital Court on 5 April to bring Saray to Phnom Penh Capital Police for questioning on “incitement to cause serious chaos to social security”.
One monk and around a dozen individuals from various youth groups and civil society organisations had been present at the Phnom Penh Police Commissariat on 6 April to monitor the situation. A few plainclothes police officers had also been deployed nearby, where they took photographs and videos and prevented human rights defenders from bringing food to Saray.
In 2023, the Supreme Court upheld incitement convictions against Saray and nine other activists in relation to peaceful gatherings calling for the release of then-imprisoned union leader Rong Chhun. The lower court had sentenced Saray in October 2021 to 20 months’ imprisonment with six months of his sentence suspended for a period of two years, and fined him 2 million riel (US$500).
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, NGO staff, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
A Kyrgyz court has sent a veteran anti-government political critic to prison, canceling a five-year suspended sentence after prosecutors argued it was too lenient. The April 5 ruling by the Bishkek City Court means 47-year-old Zarina Torokulova must serve out her sentence in a correctional colony. Bailiffs detained her immediately after the ruling was handed down. In January, Torokulova was found guilty of calling for mass disorder in a series of Facebook posts. She insisted she had nothing to do with them. A vocal critic of the government, Torokulova has twice run for a seat on the city council of the Kyrgyz capital.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
On 5 April 2024, woman human rights defender and journalist Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy, was reportedly physically assaulted by law enforcement officers in Pre-Trial Detention Center #1 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. According to her lawyer, the woman human rights defender suffered bruises on her arms and her face, along with the left side of her jaw. She is also experiencing severe headaches as a result of the assault. At time of writing, it remains unclear whether the woman human rights defender has access to medical support. Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy is a woman human rights defender and journalist who serves as the director of Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dece. Temirov Live is a YouTube-based media outlet that investigates and reports on corruption by state and non-state actors in Kyrgyzstan, founded in 2020 by Bolot Temirov, a prominent Kyrgyzstani human rights defender and journalist. Ayt Ayt Dese is a YouTube-based project aimed at popularizing human rights issues through the performance and publication of folk songs on human rights topics. Among other topics, Ayt Ayt Dese has covered investigations by Temirov Live. On 6 April 2024, human rights defender and journalist Bolot Temirov reported in his personal Telegram channel that on 5 April 2024, Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy and four of her cellmates were subjected to physical violence in the pre-trial detention center by a law enforcement officer from the State Penitentiary Service, Aqyl Ryskulov. Bolot Temirov suggested that this exposure to physical violence was retaliation for Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy’s official complaints about psychological violence by another prison staff member, submitted on 20 March 2024. The woman human rights defender also reported to her lawyer that the prison psychologist questioned her about her work in human rights media. On 6 April 2024, representatives of the National Center for the Prevention of Torture of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan – a part of the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman in Kyrgyzstan visited Pre-Trial Detention Center #1. They accepted a complaint on behalf of Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy and compiled a report documenting evidence of inhumane treatment. However, the staff of Pre-Trial Detention Center #1 prevented the representatives from taking pictures of the bruises, despite theere being no rules again such actions. On 16 January 2024, law enforcement officers in Kyrgyzstan raided the office of the media outlet Temirov Live and detained 11 human rights journalists, including Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy, for alleged calls for mass civil unrest in one of the corruption investigations published by media outlets Temirov.Live and Ayt Ayt Dece. The woman human rights defender will remain in Pre-trial Detention Center #1 until 13 May 2024, despite having a 12-year-old son. The investigation suggests that the woman human rights defender is one of the "organizers" behind the "calls for mass civil unrest," criminal offenses envisaged by Part 2 of Article 41 and Part 3 of Article 278 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. Front Line Defenders expresses grave concerns about the reported physical and psychological violence inflicted upon woman human rights defender Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy while in detention,and condemns the detention of human rights defenders and independent journalists in Kyrgyzstan, including the detention of Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy, viewing it as reprisal against legitimate and peaceful human rights work. Front Line Defenders organization is gravely concerned about the wave of repressions faced by human rights defenders and journalists in the country. In recent years, Kyrgyzstan’s authorities have refused accreditations to media outlets, passed laws restricting their activities, and filed lawsuits against independent journalists.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
Bolta Hindustan, a Hindi language independent media platform, is now faced with a YouTube ban after the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting gave a notice to Google’s legal team.
Allegations of press censorship arise as independent news platform Bolta Hindustan’s YouTube channel is banned just a week before India goes to vote.
The notice sent on April 3rd states that the Information Technology Act 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 has been violated. Furthermore, the notice is said to be confidential which means that it has not been disclosed why the channel has been banned. As per the channel, the ministry will give the final order soon.
The team at Bolta Hindustan has stated that it was only in 2023 that they could set up a YouTube channel which brought their news to a wider audience and by March 2024, they had accumulated nearly 80 million views and gained 300,000 subscribers, a remarkable number. However, after receiving a notice by Google on April 3, the channel was shut down the following day.
Journalist Samar Raj from Bolta Hindustan has asked whether the content of Bolta Hindustan is more dangerous than the communal environment created by those in power.
Interestingly, this is not the first instance of online news platforms being banned recently. On February 8, Sabrang India reported a platform managed by senior journalist Ram Dutt Tripathi named Media Swaraj was banned without any explanation. However, after much public outcry and an appeal, the channel resumed its broadcast on YouTube. Interestingly, YouTube is slated to be the most used source of news for 93 % of Indian internet users.
Haseen Rahmani founder of Bola Hindustan spoke to Sabrang India after the ban, saying “Those who give hate speech are free, but if you do a story on these givers of hate speech, then you are punished.”
He describes the events, “Two days ago, we received a confidential email from the Ministry of Broadcasting via Google’s legal team informing us that our YouTube channel has been banned, they did not tell us why as is routine. Our appeal has also been rejected. Two months ago, our Instagram account was banned, a year before that our Facebook.”
“Currently, we are first seeking clarification from YouTube and subsequently from the Ministry of Broadcasting (PIB). If we do not receive a response, we will only take the legal route forward. Our team is made of alumni from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), and is very familiar with media ethics and boundaries. We do not engage in incendiary content but present the truth. Interestingly, 90% of our channel’s stories are exclusive and not covered elsewhere by mainstream media – perhaps this is why they tried to ban our channel, they don’t want these stories to be shown. Hate speech is circulating freely. However, they will punish those who cover these stories of hate speech. They will punish the messenger.”
Several people on X, formerly Twitter, have written in support of the media portal, using the hashtag #RestoreBoltaHindustanYT.
A Hindi news media platform, Bolta Hindustan was reportedly started in 2015 when mainstream media took a nosedive. According to its website, the platform asserts that it is committed to bringing its viewers unbiased news. It was started by media students who wanted to bring to light stories that were ignored in the mainstream media.
From 2015 to 2024, Bolta Hindustan published many crucial stories that were path-breaking such as stories on demonetisation, CAA-NRC, Hathras, COVID-19, migration during the lockdown, mob lynchings, and ongoing hate speech across the country.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Censorship, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Internet freedom, Media freedom, Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
The Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association has removed the names of lawyers Dang Dinh Manh and Nguyen Van Mieng from its list of members, according to the Ho Chi Minh City Law Newspaper.
The two had not paid membership fees for many years, the paper said in its Wednesday edition, adding that the decision to suspend them came into effect on April 5.
Hinting at another reason for the Bar Association’s decision the paper added that the two lawyers had previously defended six members of the Peng Lei Buddhist House – or Tinh That Bong Lai – who were sentenced in 2022 to a combined 23 years and six months in prison on charges of “abusing democratic freedoms” under Article 331 of the Criminal Code.
Lawyer Nguyen Van Mieng told Radio Free Asia he was not surprised by the decision and noted that the Bar Association has had ongoing problems with members not paying union dues. However, he said he believed that was not the main reason for them canceling his membership.
“In Vietnam, practicing lawyers are required to participate in the bar associations of provinces and cities. Everyone must belong to a certain bar association. Therefore, when the bar association removes our names, it means we are no longer qualified to practice law in Vietnam even though we are still lawyers,” he said.
“The independence of bar associations is almost non-existent. The cases we work on related to politics and democratic freedoms are monitored and the Bar Association, as a professional organization, is supposed to protect us in our activities but they are an extended arm of the security agency, or of other legal agencies.”
He said it was clear that the real reason for removing his name from the Bar Association was to clear the way for his prosecution under Article 331 in connection with the Tinh That Bong Lai case.
Lawyer Dang Dinh Manh told RFA that, in early 2023, the Ministry of Public Security asked the Long An Provincial Security Investigation Agency to conduct a criminal investigation against him.
He said that after receiving political asylum in the U.S. he wrote to the Bar Association asking for his name to be removed from their list of lawyers and also deleted any mention of the association from his social media.
“Currently, practicing law in Vietnam with professional qualifications is unthinkable, but I still try to practice according to the concept ‘there is nothing that prevents lawyers from practicing in accordance with their professional qualities’,” he said.
”Looking back on 28 years of practice, I have only one regret: having to stop defending activists, because being able to defend them is a privilege."
The Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association is under the direct control of the central government. One of its tasks is to represent and protect the legitimate rights and interests of practicing lawyers.
Lawyers Dang Dinh Manh and Nguyen Van Mieng are two of the five people representing the defendants in the Tinh That Bong Lai case.
They have repeatedly received summonses from the Long An Police due to reports from the Department of Cyber Security & Crime Prevention which said the two distributed online video clips, images and articles that allegedly showed signs of abusing democratic freedoms, infringing on the interests of the State and the legitimate rights of organizations and individuals according to Article 331 of the Criminal Code.
Both lawyers ignored the summonses on the grounds that it was their right to remain silent as persons under investigation.
On June 11, 2023, the Long An Provincial Police website posted a search notice saying that the two lawyers had ignored requests to come forward to be interviewed and had ignored repeated summonses, while giving no reason for their absence. It said that the police did not know the whereabouts of the two lawyers.
The Long An Provincial Police Department said it intended to search for the lawyers to resolve crime reports.
Both lawyers affirmed that this search procedure is illegal, because according to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code there is no law regulating it.
The two lawyers are currently in the United States.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to work
- HRD
- Lawyer
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
Peaceful demonstrations by the Meepago people in Nabire, the capital of Central Papua province, on the morning of Friday April 5, were forcibly broken up by officers from the Nabire district police. A number of protesters were reportedly injured, some of whom were rushed to Nabire regional pubic hospital.
The protesters held actions at at least five points, namely in front of the Karang Tumaritis Market, in front of the Siriwini regional hospital, the SP 1 West Nabire intersection, the Satya Wiyata Mandala University (USWIM) campus and in front of the Jepara II Wadio Hotel, all of which were forcibly dispersed by security forces.
A source from Nabire reported that when they were dispersed, the protesters from the Papua Human Rights People's Front of Concern (FRPHAMP) were also beaten with batons while teargas was fired by police.
"The action was a peaceful action, but the security forces were vicious, they dispersed us, fired [warning] shots, hit and chased us. There was no space at all. Yet on April 3, a letter of notification was delivered to the Nabire Polres [district police]. The aim of the action was to convey the aspirations of the people regarding the heinous actions by TNI [Indonesian military] soldiers in abusing civilians in Puncak district which was a case of a human rights violation", the source explained.
But, said the source, the security forces did not give them the slightest room to move. The protesters were repressed and forcibly dispersed.
A FRPHAMP spokesperson reported that the protesters who had gathered in front of the Karang Tumaritis Market were forcibly dispersed using violence and teargas. Even though there were negotiations, the police went ahead and broke up the demonstration. At around 8.50 am the protesters were forced to disperse.
Likewise in front of Nabire regional pubic hospital. At least 16 people were forcibly taken to Nabire district police station. One of them suffered serious injuries to the head while others suffered minor injuries.
Protesters in front of the Jepara II Wadio Hotel were also blockaded by police. The protesters were then forcibly dispersed using teargas and warning shots. One person suffered a serious eye injury and four others were also badly hurt. Two people were taken away in a police vehicle. Following this, the protesters and security personnel threw things at each other.
At the SP 1 intersection, a teenager named Opinus Japugau was seriously injured when the demonstration was broken up by police. The victim was a grade 3 student from the Nabire state junior high school. Some of the crowd scatted in chaos and were chased into the forest.
In front of the USWIM Nabire campus, the protesters held their ground when they were about to be dispersed by a joint force of military and police.
The peaceful actions by the FRPHAMP, which were in response to acts of violence by TNI in Puncak district, did not take place according to the initial plan as demonstrators at a number of gathering points were forcibly dispersed.
They had also planned to convey their aspirations in front of the Central Papua governor's office. Unfortunately, this was canceled because it was blockaded and they were repressed by security forces.
Demonstrators from several points attempted to gather again after earlier scattering in chaos when they were dispersed by teargas and warning shots fired into the air.
A number of protesters coming from the direction of the USWIM campus in Kalibobo moved off towards the city until they arrived at Jalan Merdeka, not far from the Central Papua governor's office.
They then sat on the road under the direction of the coordinator while negotiating with security forces. However efforts to negotiate failed and the crowd scattered as the authorities again fired teargas.
At the same time, protesters coming from the direction of Wadio who were moving towards the governor's office were also blocked midway.
The FRPHAMP said they were very disappointed with the state's restrictive actions through the security forces. As a result, today's peaceful action plan failed to be implemented as planned.
The situation was somewhat different from usual. The protesters were totally unable to express their aspirations. Nabire in the eyes of the FRPHAMP has completely closed off democratic space for the ordinary people.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Apr 5, 2024
- Event Description
A total of four journalists in Nabire Regency, Central Papua, on Friday (5/4/2024) were allegedly prevented by the police from covering a demonstration held by the Papuan People's Front for Human Rights. At that time, the masses carried out an action following the abuse of civilians in Puncak by TNI personnel.
Apart from being blocked from reporting, some of them also experienced beatings.
Based on information gathered by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Jayapura, the four journalists, Elias Douw (wagadei.id), Kristianus Degey (seputarpapua.com), Yulianus Degei (tribun-papua.com), and Melkianus Dogopia (tadahnews.com) .
AJI Jayapura Chairman Lucky Ireeuw explained that initially the four wanted to cover the demonstration. He said Elias Douw, a journalist at wagadei.id, admitted that he arrived at the demonstration location at 08.00 WIT. At that time a number of police asked Elias where the media came from.
Elias then explained the origin of the media. After 23 minutes, the authorities fired tear gas five times, after which the protesters and police officers started making noise.
Next, four police officers approached Elias and shouted at him, 'wee little boy, come home, what are you doing here.' Some of the police officers brought rattan and wanted to hit him. Because he was afraid, Elias ran while being chased by the police.
"Apart from that, when confirmed by Kristianus Degey, a journalist at karetpapua.com admitted that his party had gone down and covered the demonstration by students and the Papuan people. When he arrived there, he took out journalistic equipment such as a cellphone to record videos or take photos, but several police officers reacted and approached him and asked in a loud tone, 'What did the dog do? Quickly delete the videos and photos,'" Lucky said in his statement, quoted by Suara.com, Saturday (6/4/2024).
The cellphone used by Kristianus to record was taken by the police. He then went to the Nabire Police to pick it up. There he was asked not to cover, 'you are not allowed to cover and you are out of this place. You come out quickly, you don't need to cover it.'
Meanwhile, Yulianus Degei, a journalist for Tribun-Papua.com, admitted that he was attacked by a number of police officers while covering a demonstration in the Wadio area, Nabire. This started when a number of police officers approached him and asked for his press card.
Not long after, he received violence in the form of a beating on his head. At that time Yulianus was wearing a helmet. Not only that, the police confiscated his work equipment, such as his cell phone.
Then, Melkianus Dogopia, a journalist for tadahnews.com, encountered obstacles when reporting. Even though he had shown his press card, he was still asked to turn around and not report.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Apr 4, 2024
- Event Description
Environmental activist from Karimunjawa, Central Java, Daniel Frits Maurits Tangkilisan was sentenced to 7 months in prison for EIT Law.
The verdict hearing was held at the Jepara District Court, Central Java, Thursday (4/4). The trial was led by Chief Judge Parlin Mangantas Bona, Member Judges Joko Ciptano, and Yusuf Sembiring.
"Adjudging that, one, the defendant Daniel has been proven legally and convincingly guilty of the crime of without the right to disseminate information aimed at creating hatred for certain groups of people based on ethnicity, religion, race and intergroup or SARA," said Parlin Mangantas Bona when reading out the trial verdict.
"Two, punish the defendant with imprisonment for seven months and a fine of Rp 5 million, provided that the fine is not paid, it will be replaced by imprisonment for one month," he continued.
In addition, in his decision, the judge ordered evidence, namely Daniel's cellphone and Facebook account, to be destroyed.
On that occasion, the Chief Judge also read out the aggravating and mitigating considerations in handing down the verdict. The aggravating factor was that the defendant Daniel was considered to have caused unrest to the Karimunjawa community.
The mitigating circumstances in the view of the panel of judges were that the defendant was an environmental activist. In addition, the defendant was cooperative and polite during the trial.
"The mitigating factors are that the defendant has never been convicted, the defendant is polite, and cooperative in the trial, the defendant is an environmental activist, an educational service that has contributed to the community not only in Karimunjawa and many other areas," he said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Apr 4, 2024
- Event Description
During a barangay session in Barangay Ibo, Toledo City on April 4, 2024, Barangay Councilor Primo Lamela, 49, was allegedly confronted by members of the Philippine Army (PA). Lamela was allegedly told by the PA team leader that he was a target of their intelligence gathering for his alleged connections with the New People’s Army (NPA). The PA team leader also alleged that Lamela and his organization posed a potential threat to the peace and order situation in their barangay. Lamela is the current Executive Director of Kapunongan Alang sa Kauswagan sa Kasadpang Sugbo (KAKASAKA), a local non-governmental organization. Lamela is also an active member of Akbayan-Cebu and an active supporter of Limpyong Hangin Alang sa Tanan (LAHAT), a local environmental organization actively engaged in opposing a coal-fired power plant in Toledo City.
In March 2024, Lamela met the PA team by chance. The team was seeking permission to stay in the barangay for intelligence purposes. Lamela escorted them to a possible site for their camp. After that, he went to his office, while the troops returned to the barangay hall. Later, when he returned, he found the troops talking to the barangay captain. After they left, the barangay captain allegedly confronted Lamela and asked about KAKASAKA’s operations. Lamela had already become suspicious about the PA’s intentions.
According to Lamela, during a formal courtesy call to the council, the PA sat in on one of their sessions. The PA explained that they would be staying in their barangay for several months. However, during the presentation, Lamela felt like the PA was attacking him. The PA brought up Lamela's affiliation and support for Akbayan Party-list and Senator Risa Hontiveros, as well as his connection to a local organization whose members were arrested during a rally in the nearby town of Aluguinsan. The PA also hinted that Lamela was linked to an alleged NPA sighting in Barangay Ibo, following a recent military encounter in Escalante City, Negros Occidental. There were reports that after the encounter, NPA members allegedly went to Barangay Ibo.
According to Lamela, after their initial meeting, the PA visited his office multiple times. The PA allegedly demanded that Lamela hand over all the legal documents about KAKASAKA. Additionally, the PA ordered Lamela to disclose all their contacts and funders. Lamela grew tired of being asked for the same documents repeatedly and requested the PA to write a formal letter for their request. On each visit, a different member of the PA arrived, but none of them introduced themselves. Lamela became concerned about the true motive behind the PA's repeated requests.
Background:
During the early 2000s, Lamela was actively opposing the construction of a power plant. The power plant's administration allegedly ordered military men to visit his office and persuade him to stop his opposition. Despite this, Lamela persisted and eventually ran for office, winning the position of barangay councilor during the 2022 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections. Currently, Lamela serves as the chairperson of two committees in the barangay - the committee on environment and the committee on fisheries and agriculture. He is also the vice-chairperson of the committee on women.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
Case shared by FORUM-ASIA member TFDP
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Apr 3, 2024
- Event Description
Executive editor at https://dawanal.com/ Arjun Thapaliya received death threat for reporting on April 3 in Siraha. Siraha lies in Madhesh Province of Nepal.
Freedom Forum talked to Thapaliya about the incident. Editor Thapaliya shared with FF that he has been following activities of Golbazar Municipality and writing news on the municipality’s misconduct. On the day of incident, Thapaliya published news about financial irregularities in construction of a highway in the municipality. He also mentioned alleged involvement of Chief Administrative Officer, engineer and ward chairperson in the corruption.
After half an hour of publication of the news, administrative officer called Thapaliya on mobile and threatened to shoot him for publishing news. He also spoke foul words on Thapaliya.
“Thereafter, I disconnected his call. On his 18th attempt as I received the call, he shouted that he would immediately come to me and shoot me”, said editor Thapaliya, “Then, I went to lodge a complaint at Area Police Office, Golbazar but they refused to register it. I will again go there tomorrow.”
Freedom Forum condemns the threat issued to a journalist. Journalists have right to report on the public issues exposing irregularities and make citizens informed. In spite of adopting legitimate ways to show concern over published news, threatening a journalist to death is a serious violation of press freedom.
FF strongly urges the municipal authority to respect journalists’ right to free reporting. The security authority is also urged to ensure safety of journalist to avoid any untoward incident.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death threat, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Apr 3, 2024
- Event Description
The sister of the detained journalist Nguyen Vu Binh, Nguyen Thi Phong, told The 88 Project that she visited him at Detention Center No. 1 in Hanoi on April 3. Phong explained that since Binh is still under investigation, he is still not allowed to have visitors. She could only send Binh some food and money. Binh, a former writer at the Party mouthpiece, The Communist Review, and one of the founders of the pro-democracy group Brotherhood for Democracy, was arrested under Article 117 for his alleged engagement in the distribution of anti-state propaganda.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Apr 3, 2024
- Event Description
On April 3, Xu Guang (徐光), a 1989 student leader, was sentenced to four years in prison for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” after he demanded that the Chinese government acknowledge the Tiananmen Massacre and held a sign calling for redress at a local police station in May 2022. Xu was reportedly tortured, shackled, and mistreated while in detention.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment, Torture, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Online, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Apr 2, 2024
- Event Description
On 2 April 2024, indigenous human rights defender Surju Tekam was arrested following a raid on his home by security forces in Chhattisgarh state, India. He is held under the regressive Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Arms Act and has been denied bail by the National Investigation Agency Court in Bilaspur. Surju Tekam's arrest stems from his vocal advocacy on behalf of peaceful local movements against increasing human rights violations, forcible land acquisition for corporate interests, and militarization in the state.
Surju Tekam is an indigenous human rights defender and the convenor of the Bastar Coordination Committee of Mass Movements (Bastar Jan Sangharsh Samanvay Samiti) and the Vice-President of Sarva Adivasi Samaj, a collective of all Adivasi organizations in Chhattisgarh. He has led major protest movements of the Adivasi community in Chhattisgarh against corporatization and militarization, and has been vocal against human rights violations by security forces, including extrajudicial executions, arrests of community leaders, and forced evictions.
On 2 April 2024, around 4:00AM, Surju Tekam’s residence was raided by security forces, and he was subsequently arrested under the UAPA and the Arms Act. He was produced before the NIA court in Bilaspur and denied bail. Surju Tekam’s family members allege that literature associated with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) (CPI(M)) and weapons were planted in his residence by security forces. The police have alleged that Surju Tekam has been mobilizing Adivasis on behalf of Maoist organizations. He has been arrested under the UAPA and the Arms Act, making procuring his release on bail extremely difficult.
Arrests of indigenous human rights defenders in Chhattisgarh under accusations of Maoist links have been used as a means of persecution to stifle dissent and undermine their legitimate demands for the rights of Adivasi communities in the region. The arrest of human rights defender Surju Tekam in the period leading up to the national elections in India has raised concerns that it is aimed at silencing his advocacy against state abuse and violations.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment, Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Indigenous peoples' rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Apr 2, 2024
- Event Description
Peaceful demonstrations conducted by the Anti-Militarism Front in Jayapura city and Jayapura regency with the aim of submitting aspirations to DPRP members at the DPRP office in Papua Province were silenced by the Jayapura City Police and Jayapura Police for unclear reasons with a violent approach that led to arbitrary arrests. Based on the testimony of the coordinator of the Anti-Militarism Front, long before they carried out the demonstration they had given a notification letter in accordance with Article 10 paragraph (1), paragraph (2) and paragraph (3), Law Number 9 of 1998 concerning Freedom of Expression in Public.
Based on the assistance and monitoring of PBH LBH Papua, the facts of the Anti-Militarism Front demonstration were colored by the silencing of democratic space to acts of violence and arbitrary arrests that occurred on April 2, 2024.
Initially at 07:30 WIT, the action period in the Sentani area gathered at the gathering point of the new market and Sentani social street but was immediately intercepted by the Jayapura Resort Police and immediately arrested and immediately taken to the Doyo police station. Based on the data obtained, the action period arrested and detained at Jayapura Police Station amounted to 65 people.
In a separate place, at 08:00 Wit, the action began to move from various gathering points including: 1. Abepura Circle, 2. Uncen gate below, 3. Expo Waena and 4. Perumnas lll Waena.
Based on monitoring, at: 08: 42 Wit the mass of action at the top Uncen gate joined the mass at Perumnas lll Waena. Seeing this condition, police officers from Jayapura City Police silenced the democratic space with acts of violence, namely the firing of tear gas directed at the action period and also individuals who beat using rubber stones and forced the dissolution of the action period.
In addition, at 09:23 WIT, the protesters from the Waena expo who were traveling to Abepura were stopped by police officers from the Jayapura city police right in front of the Waena red light road for approximately 2 (two) hours. Furthermore, PBH LBH Papua together with the Field Coordinator lobbied the Head of Intel of Jayapura City Police and the Head of Heram Police Station but the Police could not allow the action period to join the action period in Abepura. Furthermore, the field coordinator contacted Nesta Suhuniap as the General Coordinator to come and lobby, after Nesta arrived and negotiated but could not access so Nesta directed the action to disperse each.
Apart from that, at 11:32 Wit the action period in front of the USTJ campus entrance received repressive actions and tear gas shots by Brimob so that the action period was scattered everywhere and there was also an action of throwing stones and others until it led to the arrest of one of the Cenderawasih University students on behalf of TINUS DIPUL 2nd semester law faculty and detained at the Abepura Police Station. Apparently the student before being arrested was beaten by police officers, so that the left eyebrow was injured. The detained student was released after advocacy efforts made by PBH LBH Papua.
Apart from the above action period, since: 10:11 Wit the action period which was previously in the Abepura circle joined the mass gathered in front of the Uncen gate below then the action period survived and conducted political speeches. Furthermore, the mass of several points collectively they joined all at the Uncen gate below. Until 13:11 Wit, the DPRP had arrived at the Uncen gate below, then the coordinator provided space for each OKP and each BEM representative to express their opinions and then the coordinators read out the Statement of Attitude and finally handed over the Statement of Attitude to representatives of DPRP members in front of the Uncen gate.
Furthermore, PBH LBH Papua confirmed that 65 people of action who were detained at Jayapura Police Station had apparently been advocated by PAHAM Papua and Elsham Papua so that 65 people of action had been released since 12:00 Wit. While one of the Action Period is still being treated at Dian Harapan Hospital due to acts of violence committed by police officers during the forced dispersal using a violent approach.
Based on the description above, it can be concluded that the Jayapura Police and Jayapura District Police along with Brimob Members who were on duty on April 2, 2024 carried out their duties to disperse the peaceful demonstration of the Anti-Militarism Front with a violent approach so that there were several protesters who were injured, thus reflecting the fact of Criminal Acts of Persecution as stipulated in Article 351 of the Criminal Code and made arbitrary arrests so that there were 65 protesters detained at Jayapura Police Station and 1 protesters detained at Abepura Police Station, thus reflecting the fact of Violation of the Police Code of Ethics as stipulated in Article 6 letter q. Government Regulation No. 2 of 2003 concerning Dismissal of Police Conduct, Government Regulation Number 2 of 2003 concerning Discipline of the Indonesian National Police.
In accordance with the facts of the statement of the Coordinator of the Anti-Militarism Front, long before they carried out the demonstration they had given a notification letter in accordance with Article 10 paragraph (1), paragraph (2) and paragraph (3), Law Number 9 of 1998 concerning Freedom of Expression in Public. Meanwhile, Police officers who do not carry out their obligations "After receiving a notification letter, the Police are obliged to: a. immediately provide a notification receipt letter; b. coordinate with the person in charge of expressing opinions in public; c. coordinate with the head of the agency / institution that will be the purpose of expressing opinions; d. prepare security for the place, location and route" as stated in Article 10 paragraph (1).
- Impact of Event
- 68
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Apr 1, 2024
- Event Description
On 1 April 2024, Afghan human rights defender Ahmad Fahim Azimi was sentenced to one year of imprisonment by the Taliban court, in Kabul. The human rights defender is facing reprisals due to his advocacy for human rights, especially the right to education for women and girls in Afghanistan.
Ahmad Fahim Azimi is an Afghan human rights defender who has advocated for the right to education of women and girls and has campaigned peacefully against the ban on girls' education by the de facto authorities. The human rights defender is the head of the Better Thinking Centre and director of the Digital Citizen Lab in Afghanistan. He has worked to promote girls' education, including supporting the Afghan girls’ robotics team.
On 1 April 2024, the Taliban court announced its verdict, sentencing Ahmad Fahim Azimi to one year of imprisonment. The human rights defender and his family were not present in court when the sentence was passed. The human rights defender’s family continues to advocate for his release and fair trial rights. An appeal against the conviction and sentence of Ahmad Fahim Azimi is currently before the Appellate Court, and there is no information to date about the human rights defender's release or condition in jail.
Ahmad Fahim Azimi was arrested on 17 October 2023 by the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) District 40 at their office in Karta Char, Kabul. He was accused of assisting girls from the Afghan robotics team to leave the country and enabling and organising women’s protests in Afghanistan. The Taliban seized the human rights defender’s passport and devices, including laptops, flash drives, and documents, including study materials and organizational papers. The human rights defender was detained for 72 days at the GDI District 40 detention centre, during which time he was interrogated about his work and subjected to torture and solitary confinement. He was denied access to legal counsel or medical treatment during his detention. On 27 December 2023, Ahmad Fahim Azimi was produced before a Taliban court in Kabul and then transferred to the Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul.
Front Line Defenders condemns the arbitrary arrest of Ahmad Fahim Azimi, his treatment in detention, and the denial of his fair trial rights. The imprisonment of the human rights defender is a reprisal for his commitment to women’s and girls' rights and his interventions to promote girls' education in Afghanistan. Front Line Defenders is concerned about the safety of Ahmad Fahim Azimi, his family, and his lawyers. His imprisonment and treatment have taken an immense toll on the human rights defender’s family, especially his elderly father, who suffered a stroke on 20 April 2024 and is in critical condition. Front Line Defenders calls for the immediate release of Ahmad Fahim Azimi and for the protection of his family, colleagues, and those advocating against his continued imprisonment by the Taliban.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security, Women's rights
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Afghanistan: two educators and WHRDs arrested
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Mar 31, 2024
- Event Description
Chief Administrative Officer of Shivasatakshi Municipality Amrit Bahadur Rai spoke foul on noted RTI activist Sharada Bhusal for requesting information on March 31 in Jhapa. Jhapa lies in Koshi Province of Nepal.
Activist Bhusal shared with Freedom Forum that she had requested information relating to the municipality’s internal and external audit reports using RTI application on January 31, 2024 through email.
Following her request, the officer Rai called her on mobile and spoke abusively. Bhusal shared a voice clip of the call with Freedom Forum. In the call, Rai was found shouted at Bhusal for information seeking through her email.
“Do you think you will get information delivered at your home? Did you pay for the extra pages of information as per RTI Law,” he was shouting.
Bhusal responded that she was expecting the information through email but if she needs to pay, he could inform about it through email.
Moreover, the chief administrative officer Rai continuing scolding and accusing artivist Bhusal of intentionally trying to trouble government officials in the pretext of RTI.
Freedom Forum condemns the misbehaviour of a public officer towards a citizen. Every citizen has right to information as guaranteed by the constitution. The officer should correct his behaviour towards the service seeker. The public agency is obliged to share information as per law to the information seeker.
Such activity of government employees is quite discouraging to building RTI regime and obstructing good governance efforts at a time when good governance is a pressing need in the country.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to information
- HRD
- RTI activist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 29, 2024
- Event Description
Authorities in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu have handed a four-year jail term to veteran rights activist Xu Qin, after repeatedly delaying her trial and sentencing despite concerns over her deteriorating health, and amid reports of torture from a prominent rights group.
The Yangzhou Intermediate People's Court sentenced Xu, a key figure in the Wuhan-based China Rights Observer group founded by jailed veteran dissident Qin Yongmin, to four years' imprisonment on March 29 for "incitement to subvert state power," a charge frequently used to target peaceful critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, the Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch rights website reported.
It quoted Xu as telling the sentencing hearing: "I'd like to thank everyone for their care and support, and also thank my husband for his help and support. Regardless of whether it’s futile or not, I must appeal. This is my right."
An award-winning activist in a number of high-profile human rights cases, including that of detained human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng, Xu was detained under "residential surveillance at a designated location" in 2021, a form of incommunicado detention rights groups say puts detainees at greater risk of torture and mistreatment.
Her family told RFA in earlier interviews that Xu is a stroke and heart attack survivor who suffers from high blood pressure, among other ailments.
But according to the Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch rights website, many of Xu's health problems were caused by her torture and mistreatment in detention.
"During her detention and interrogation, Xu Qin was brutally tortured to extract a confession, and was held in solitary confinement for a long period of time," the website said in a report about her sentencing published on Sunday.
"Xu already suffered from multiple health problems including stroke, heart attack and hypertension, and as a result [of the torture], she was left paralyzed and unable to stand," it said.
Since she was locked up in the detention center, Xu has started using a wheelchair, according to her lawyer.
Xu told the court on Friday that she would appeal the sentence, which came after more than two years in pretrial detention at the Yangmiao Detention Center in Yangzhou city, where she held intermittent hunger strikes in protest at a loss of communications privileges as well as a months-long ban on meetings with her lawyer, Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch said.
Repeated calls to Xu's lawyer rang unanswered during office hours on Monday.
Trial was delayed
Xu's trial was delayed several times following her initial detention in May 2021, with the authorities citing only "unavoidable circumstances."
But her family says it was delayed due to her refusal to provide the state security police with a "confession."
The trial was eventually held on Nov. 7, 2022, but the verdict and sentencing were also repeatedly delayed until now.
New York-based rights lawyer Chen Chuangchuang, who also heads the U.S. branch of the banned China Democracy Party, said Chen has always been an extremely tenacious activist.
"The trial was held a long time ago, but the verdict and sentencing were delayed multiple times, which is a deliberate form of torture used by the Chinese Communist Party," Chen told RFA on Monday.
Chen said that one of the purposes of the authorities' repeated delay in pronouncing the sentence was to get Xu Qin to plead guilty, and that she had been especially targeted due to her association with Qin Yongmin.
According to the Weiquanwang rights website, the charges against Xu listed her participation in Qin's China Rights Observer and its sister organization Rose China as evidence against her.
Qin was sentenced in July 2018 to 13 years' imprisonment for "incitement to subvert state power," the latest in a string of long sentences for his peaceful dissent and attempts to build the banned China Democracy Party.
A contemporary of exiled dissident Wei Jingsheng, Qin was sentenced to eight years in prison for "counterrevolutionary propaganda and subversion" in the wake of China's Democracy Wall movement in 1981.
He served a further two years' "re-education through labor" in 1993 after he penned a controversial document titled the "Peace Charter."
Qin then served a 12-year jail term for subversion after he helped found the China Democracy Party in 1998 in spite of a ban on opposition political parties.
Xu was honored with the Lin Zhao Freedom Award for her human rights advocacy in 2022, and the Oscar China Freedom Human Rights Award last month.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment, Torture
- Rights Concerned
- Access to justice, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Mar 29, 2024
- Event Description
Kaski based reporter to Gorkhapatra National daily Fanindra Adhikari was issued threat for reporting on March 29. Kaski lies in Gandaki Province of Nepal.
Reporter Adhikari shared with Freedom Forum that he had wrote news about a case filed by Forest Division Office Kaski at the District Court against 22 people who encroached the forest in Pumdibhumdi, Pokhara. The case was filed on March 26. One of the accused Mekh Bahadur Kshetri called on Adhikari’s mobile and sent threatening messages on his mobile.
Kshetri not only threatened me but also called on my wife’s mobile and accused me of writing news for money. He also threatened me of attack.
Freedom Forum condemns the threat issued to journalist and his family for his reporting. Kshetri is urged to approach the regulatory body Press Council Nepal for any concern over published news rather than threatening the journalist.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 29, 2024
- Event Description
A prison in Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa province is refusing to allow the family of political prisoner Nguyen Thi Tam to bring her traditional medicine to treat uterine fibroids, her sister told Radio Free Asia.
Fibroids are growths, which don’t normally develop into cancer but can cause major swelling in the uterus leading to the appearance of pregnancy.
Tam, 52, was arrested in June 2020 on charges of “propaganda against the State” under Article 117 of the criminal code.
The charges related to social media posts about a police attack on Dong Tam commune during which officers shot and killed protester Le Dinh Kinh.
In Dec. 2021, the People’s Court of Hanoi sentenced Tam to six years in prison.
After the appeal was rejected in Aug. 2022, Tam was transferred to serve her sentence at Gia Trung Prison in Gia Lai province, and then to Prison No. 5 in Thanh Hoa from the end of May 2023.
On Monday, Nguyen Thanh Mai told RFA her sister, Tam, was found to be suffering from fibroids in March last year.
She was not treated by an outside medical specialist but only at the prison’s infirmary, which lacked suitable medical equipment.
Her family sent traditional medicine and said Tam’s condition improved after using it. But since October, the prison stopped accepting the pills and dried leaves they sent.
“They said they could not determine the ingredients of the medicine the family sent,” Mai said. “They also said if she got sick she would have a prescription and the family could buy medicine according to the new instructions and send it.”
The medicine, Crinum latifolium, is on a list of 70 medicinal plants approved by Vietnam’s Ministry of Health in 2014, saying it was an “anti-cancer and eliminating fungus” supporting the treatment of cervical cancer,
Mai said the basic medicines given to Tam by the prison hospital had no effect on the fibroids and her sister had been bleeding for 17 consecutive days.
The reporter called Prison No. 5 to verify the information provided by Tam’s family. The unidentified call operator said prisoners can only receive medication with a doctor’s prescription.
“People here have a hospital. When they get sick they go to the hospital,” he said.
“As for Vietnamese medicine, we don’t know how it should be taken. There are no instructions on how to take it so how can anyone know?”
The person asked the reporter to come directly to the detention facility to have additional questions answered in person.
Mai said the prison also stopped giving Tam many other items the family sent including cassava flour and green bean powder which the prison canteen doesn’t have or sells at exorbitant prices.
Tam’s cell was searched, her sister said, and many belongings such as diaries, English books and writing materials were confiscated.
On March 29, Tam called her family to talk about mistreatment but a prison officer repeatedly intervened, telling her to “only talk about health issues” and finally hung up the phone.
Amnesty International publicized Tam’s health issues in March 2023, urging the Vietnamese government to urgently provide adequate health care and unconditionally release Tam and other activists. imprisoned for peacefully exercising human rights.
Former prisoner of conscience Dang Thi Hue said conditions in Prison No. 5 are extremely harsh, and poor nutrition caused even healthy inmates to get sick.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Right to health, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Mar 29, 2024
- Event Description
Senior journalist and Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalists (RIUJ) Secretary General Dr Furqan Rao was attacked in his office by a group of people following recent union elections at the Associated Press of Pakistan. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), condemn the attack, and urge authorities to ensure the safety of journalists.
Rao, the head of the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP)'s China desk, was attacked at approximately 11:00pm on March 29, allegedly by Rana Imran Latif and his colleagues, who forcibly entered the agency’s Islamabad offices. The group proceeded to Dr Rao’s offices, before attempting to assault him. The assailants were met with opposition from APP staff, who defended the senior journalist from the attackers.
A First Information Report has been registered at the Aabparah Police Station in Islamabad on March 29 under rioting, unlawful assembly, destruction of property, and criminal intimidation sections of the Pakistan Penal Code. Authorities have reportedly begun an investigation into the incident, with a Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ataullah Tarar launching an inquiry committee to investigate the incident, and potentially inform a potential case against the outlet's managing director. Results from the inquiry are expected from April 20.
The attack comes following recent elections of APP collective bargaining agent unions, the results of which were opposed by outlet management. The perpetrators, reportedly external actors not employed at the APP may have been employed by outlet management in an intimidatory attack against Dr Rao, a union activist.
The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) said: “We demand that Prime Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif immediately takes action on this serious incident and punish the people involved, otherwise the PFUJ will be forced to protest against it across the country and hold a march towards Islamabad with hundreds of working journalists. The PFUJ will not tolerate abuse on working journalists at all."
The IFJ said: “Union elections are an opportunity for workers to have their voice heard in the workplace. If reports that management have engaged persons to carry out an attack against workers are true, then this is a flagrant abuse of labour rights, and must be investigated by authorities.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Raid
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 28, 2024
- Event Description
Vietnamese authorities on Thursday arrested and charged two Facebook bloggers for “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe the interests of the state” for posting comments about the handling of a case of a death row inmate, Vietnamese media reported.
The Security Investigation Agency of the Binh Duong provincial police charged Nguyen Duc Du and Hoang Quoc Viet under Article 331 of Vietnam’s Penal Code, saying their social media posts about death row inmate Ho Duy Hai being unjustly sentenced had insulted judiciary agencies.
Their cases bring to five the number of people who have been prosecuted under Article 331, a law that rights groups say authorities regularly use to suppress dissent or criticism of the government.
Authorities arrested and temporarily detained Du, 48, while they banned Viet, 46, from leaving his residential area. Both live in Binh Duong province in southern Vietnam.
The Public Security Ministry’s People’s Public Security Newspaper reported that police said Du and Viet published many social media posts with content that distorted, slandered and defamed agencies and individuals – without specifying the content of their posts.
The prosecution of the two bloggers also illustrates the lengths that authorities will go to to silence critics for comments they made or social media posts they wrote in the past.
Nguyen Van Dai, who used to work as a lawyer in Hanoi for many years, said social media platforms have been full of information defending and demanding justice for Ho Duy Hai since 2008.
Hai was arrested in March 2008 and convicted nine months later of robbery and the murder of two postal employees in Long An province. He was sentenced to five years in prison for the theft and given the death penalty for the murders, despite a lack of crucial evidence and irregularities in how the case was handled.
In 2020, the Supreme People’s Court rejected a request by the Supreme People’s Procuracy to reinvestigate the case, prompting Hai’s family members to petition lawmakers over his death sentence. That petition has not been addressed, and Hai, now 39, is still on death row.
The prosecution of Du and Viet is a crackdown on freedom of speech and was carried out to serve the political purposes of several officials in the judiciary system, Dai said.
“The arrest and detention of the two individuals who posted information concerning the Ho Duy Hai case on social media is nothing more than suppression, as the information [they posted] has been available for a long time,” Dai said.
Numerous democratic countries and human rights groups have called on Hanoi to repeal or amend Article 331, along with Article 117, arguing they are abused to stifle dissent.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment, Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 28, 2024
- Event Description
Activists Tantawan Tuatulanon and Nutanon Chaimahabut, who have been on a hunger strike for over a month to protest their detention, have been denied bail for the 7th time.
Tantawan’s father, Sommai Tuatulanon, filed a bail request for Tantawan and Nutanon with the Criminal Court this morning (28 March) because their health has worsened due to their hunger strike. However, the court dismissed his request because there is no reason to change its existing order.
Activist Orawan Phupong said that Tantawan and Nutanon have very low blood potassium levels, putting their lives in danger. Doctors have recommended that they receive treatment, but they have refused.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) also said that, according to a cardiologist monitoring Tantawan, she has heart arrhythmia due to low potassium and magnesium level. The cardiologist has told her family that she could go into cardiac arrest.
Tantawan and Nutanon were arrested on 13 February on several charges, including sedition, for allegedly honking at and blocking a royal motorcade and for posting dash cam footage of the incident. They have so far been detained for 44 days and all of their bail requests have been denied.
In a Facebook post on 11 February, Tantawan said that she did not block or cut off the motorcade. She also said she did not know that there was going to be a motorcade. She was on the way back from a funeral and admitted that she was speeding because she was in a hurry.
The dashcam footage shows the vehicle stuck in traffic. The car’s horn can be heard when it moved to the front of the line and the lane was blocked by a police vehicle. The footage also shows that the vehicle was stuck behind another police vehicle at the exit from the expressway. A police officer can be seen approaching the vehicle before Tantawan is heard arguing.
On 20 March, the Criminal Court extended their detention order for 12 more days, as the police claim they are still gathering evidence.
Tantawan and Nutanon has been on a hunger strike since the beginning of their detention. They are calling for a reform of the justice system, an end to the detention of dissidents, and for Thailand to denied its bid for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council.
Tantawan is now held at Thammasat University Hospital and Nutanon at the Corrections Hospital. Both have refused medical intervention. They continue to refuse food and are drinking only a small amount of water each day.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to health, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Mar 28, 2024
- Event Description
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) strongly condemns the arrests of three Hazara women human rights defenders (WHRDs) in Afghanistan. The arrests happened amidst the Taliban’s ongoing gender apartheid and persecution of ethnic and religious minorities.
On 28 March 2024, the Taliban arrested and detained WHRDs Azada Rezaei, Nadia Rezaei, and Elaha Rezaei alongside their brother, Yahya Rezaei. Two of the sisters are minors. In 2022, their sister Tamana was also detained for 29 days.
The Rezaeis’ whereabouts are currently unknown. Taliban representatives have denied involvement, while the Kabul police have failed to provide any information.
FORUM-ASIA calls for the immediate release of the Rezaei siblings. We also call for the safe return of WHRD Manizha Sediqqi, whose health conditions have been deteriorating under detention.
The Taliban’s persecution of human rights defenders
The Rezaei sisters are members of the Afghan Women’s Justice Movement, a women-led initiative that fearlessly challenges the Taliban’s discriminatory policies. The Rezaeis belong to the Shia Hazara community, a persecuted ethnic and religious minority in Afghanistan that has endured a ‘slow genocide’ under the Taliban.
Under Taliban custody, human rights defenders experience torture and ill-treatment, impacting not only their physical health but also their mental well-being. The threats and harassment also extend to their families, including intimidation, house searches, revenge killing, and enforced marriages.
WHRDs are at the forefront of resisting the Taliban’s oppressive regime.
Since the Taliban’s illegitimate takeover in 2021, several protest movements have been courageously and peacefully led by WHRDs despite the country’s shrinking civic space. However, in the absence of accountability, human rights defenders–within Afghanistan and those in exile–face numerous obstacles as they advocate for the protection and promotion of people’s fundamental rights and freedoms.
Call to Action
FORUM-ASIA calls for the immediate release of the Rezaie siblings alongside all other defenders who have been unjustly detained for their legitimate human rights work.
‘FORUM-ASIA urges the international community to hold the Taliban accountable for all its atrocious crimes, demanding them to fully respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of the people of Afghanistan as protected under the country’s international human rights commitments. The international community must help in providing hassle-free humanitarian visas and in establishing safe resettlement schemes for human rights defenders from Afghanistan. Members of vulnerable ethnic and religious groups–such as the Hazaras–should be prioritised in these resettlement processes,’ said Mary Aileen Diez-Bacalso, Executive Director of FORUM-ASIA.
We are also calling for greater support for Afghanistan’s civil society organisations and activists, including those in exile, to enable them to resume their invaluable advocacy work. Lastly, we demand the establishment of an international investigative accountability mechanism, which is capable of collecting, preserving, and analysing evidence related to all human rights violations in Afghanistan.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Family of HRD, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 28, 2024
- Event Description
Feeling aggrieved by the news in one of the online media, three TNI-AL members allegedly committed acts of violence against an online media journalist (Sidik Kasus), on behalf of Sugandi.
Reportedly, the persecution took place at the Panambuang Port Guard Post in South Bacan District, South Halmahera Regency (Halsel), North Maluku Province (Malut).
The journalist was persecuted because he did not accept the news that tens of thousands of KL of fuel allegedly belonging to Dirpolairud Polda North Maluku were detained by Navy personnel in South Halmahera.
The persecution incident occurred on Thursday (28/3/2024) at around 14:00 WIT at the Panambuang Port Post.
"Around 12 noon, from the Navy (TNI AL) picked me up by car. The 3 Navy members took me directly to the Navy Post in Panambuang Village. After that, around 2pm and at the post, the persecution occurred," Sugandi told reporters.
He revealed that he was persecuted because the three members of the Navy were dissatisfied with the journalist's reporting.
"The persecution they carried out on the grounds that there was news that went up early without confirmation. But in this case, we have confirmed and there were 3 of us journalists. Even the recordings are also with 2 other journalists. So the news that went up too, the confirmation results are there until now," said Sugandi.
However, Sugandi said, according to the 3 unscrupulous members of the Navy, that the results of the confirmation were not for news, except for the results of the interview.
"For that reason, they were dissatisfied and took the step of hitting me. Mostly I was kicked in the head until my ears bled and 2 teeth were broken. My 2 hands were also hit. I was also kicked in the back and hit with a hose until I was injured," Sugandi explained while showing the bruises on his back.
Sugandi himself has now been examined at the Labuha Regional General Hospital (RSUD).
Furthermore, the case of alleged persecution of journalists, 3 unscrupulous members of the Navy will be reported to the Military Police (POM) of the Navy in Ternate City.
Until this news was published there was no official statement from the Ternate Navy base.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 26, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Vietnam on Tuesday sentenced a man to eight years in prison for managing a Facebook page that shared news and content that authorities said was against the state.
Nguyen Van Lam, 33, was the administrator of “The Diary of Patriots,” a page on Meta’s social media platform that authorities said defamed and smeared Vietnam's senior leaders.
Lam was convicted in the Tien Giang People’s Court in southern Vietnam of “making, storing, disseminating, propagandizing anti-state information and materials” under Article 117 of Vietnam’s Penal Code, which is criticized by rights groups as being an intentionally vague law that allows Hanoi to stifle dissent.
According to the indictment, Lam, a native of Vinh Hoa commune, Vinh Loc district in Thanh Hoa province, regularly visited websites and social media pages to read posts and articles with bad content and therefore developed a “hostile and anti-state” attitude.
He used the Facebook account “Nguyễn Lâm” to put up 19 posts with content distorting and defaming the system of one-party rule in Vietnam, it said..
There are multiple pages on Facebook with the same name, and Lam may have had connections to more than one of them, state media said.
One of the “Diary of Patriots” pages had more than 800,000 followers.
The earliest page was created in 2011, at the beginning of widespread demonstrations against China’s claims and aggressiveness in the South China Sea. Though Vietnam upholds its own claims, it often stifles anti-China dissent.
Restricting freedom of speech
The arrest was aimed at punishing those who had “created a forum for people to discuss and share multifaceted information in the spirit of freedom of speech,” said a member of that page who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons.
“I am against the punishments against those who exercise human rights and promote human rights values,” he told RFA Vietnamese in a text message, saying that he did not know Lam personally.
He called on Vietnamese authorities to adopt the world’s “civilized standards,” and said that the international community has a responsibility not to ignore Vietnam’s crackdowns on activists while supporting Hanoi’s bid to stay on the U.N. Human Rights Council.
State media reports did not include information about Lam’s arrest.
RFA attempted to find details about his arrest by contacting the Tien Giang provincial police department, but staff who answered the phone refused to respond to queries.
Lam did nothing criminal by managing pages on social media, said Phil Robertson, Deputy Asia Director for New York-based Human Rights Watch.
“He should be immediately and unconditionally released,” Robertson said. “Sadly, it looks like Vietnam’s leaders will not stop this crackdown until they have imprisoned every last activist in the country.”
In July 2023, Ho Chi Minh City police arrested Phan Tat Thanh, who was allegedly the former administrator of “The Diary of Patriots” page, charging him with “propaganda against the state” under Article 117.
RFA’s database shows that since January 2024, the Vietnamese government has arrested six activists on the same charges and sentenced one to six years in prison for the same accusation.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 26, 2024
- Event Description
Chinese authorities have detained incommunicado a Tibetan monk from the local Kirti Monastery for staging a peaceful solo protest against repressive policies in Ngaba (Ch: Aba) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, in the Tibetan province of Amdo.
On 26 March, a Tibetan monk named Pema was arbitrarily detained and subjected to incommunicado detention by the local Public Security Bureau Officers for staging a peaceful solo protest by holding a portrait of the Dalai Lama on the stretch of a road known to the local Tibetans as’ martyrs road’ in Ngaba County. Local witnesses reported hearing Pema shouting slogans calling for the “Return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet” and “Religious Freedom in Tibet,” among others.
Pema, who is in his 50s, is son of Toepa and a native of Soruma village in Ngaba County. Pema serves as a primary teacher at the Kirti Monastery while pursuing higher Buddhist studies. He is widely known in the monastery as Gen Pema (English: Teacher Pema).
Following Pema’s arbitrary arrest, Chinese security forces have intensified their control and restrictions in Ngaba County, especially in Soruma village and Kirti Monastery.
A source informed TCHRD that “prior to deleting his WeChat account, Chinese authorities contacted individuals on his contact list, seeking information about their identities. His personal WeChat is now inaccessible and has been deleted.”
On several occasions, Pema has confronted the local police authorities for pressuring young monks to be enrolled in state-run schools and forcing them to stop attending the Kirti monastic school.
March is considered a ‘politically sensitive’ month by Chinese authorities because of the 10 March anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day that led to the exile of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and thousands of Tibetans since 1959. The annual sessions of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) are also held the same month, leading to heightened restrictions in all parts of Tibet.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is gravely concerned about Pema’s fate and whereabouts. His current location remains a mystery, and we call for his immediate and unconditional release. Chinese authorities must also disclose Pema’s whereabouts and condition to his family members without delay and guarantee his physical and mental well-being.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 26, 2024
- Event Description
Hoang Duc Binh reported to his family that he was put in leg shackles for 10 days, from March 26 to April 5, by warden Nguyen Ngoc Thach at An Diem Prison in Quang Nam Province. He also has been prohibited from receiving supplies or calls from his family for three months, as well as family visits for two months. According to Binh’s family, Binh was punished for protesting against unfair treatment by the warden, who did not let him have several items sent by his family and cited him for “not following orders by prison authorities.” While Binh was in shackles, guards allegedly confiscated his personal belongings, as well as those of other political prisoners. At least four political prisoners went on a hunger strike to protest the mistreatment: Hoang Duc Binh, Trinh Ba Phuong, Phan Cong Hai and Nguyen Thai Binh. As a result, all four were put in “disciplinary cells” and were not allowed to go out to the yard or communicate with other inmates.
In a letter home dated April 8, Trinh Ba Phuong corroborated Hoang Duc Binh’s account of being disciplined and the group’s hunger strike. Phuong’s wife, Do Thi Thu, was able to visit him on April 21 and reported that Phuong and several other political prisoners had been locked in their cells since April 8 with everything passed in and out through a small opening. Phuong told Thu it was a form of psychological torture. Phuong also said that Binh is suffering from back pain, abdominal pain, loss of smell, and chest pain. Binh did ask prison authorities for medication for his chest pain but so far has reportedly not received any. Thu also reported that for the past year, Phuong has not been eating any food made by the prison; at one point, the food caused him severe diarrhea and stomach problems. Phuong also said the water source at An Diem is highly polluted.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Use of Excessive Force
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 25, 2024
- Event Description
Student activist Sirapob Phumpheungphut has been found guilty of royal defamation and sentenced to prison over a speech given at a protest on 18 November 2020 about the monarchy’s role in Thai politics.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said today (25 March) that the South Bangkok Criminal Court sentenced Sirapob to 3 years in prison, but later reduced his sentence to 2 years because he gave useful testimony. However, the Court found him not guilty of violating the Emergency Decree and the Public Assembly Act because he did not organize the protest.
The South Bangkok Criminal Court later decided to forward Sirapob’s bail request to the Appeal Court. He will be detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison until a ruling is made.
Sirapob was accused of royal defamation for a speech given at the 18 November 2020 protest, during which protesters marched from the Ratchaprasong Intersection to the police headquarters. The protest came after a crackdown on a protest in front of the parliament complex the day before.
During the protest, activists took turn giving speeches on a speaker truck. Sirapob spoke about the role of the monarchy in Thai politics and the transfer of some army units to be under the King’s direct command. The Court ruled that his speech was “anti-monarchy” and that his criticism was not made in good faith because he defamed the King by saying that the King was above the Constitution and held centralized power.
Another activist, Chukiat Sangwong, was also charged along with Sirapob. However, he did not appear in court, so the Court struck his case from the case list.
Update:
The Appeal Court on 27 March denied bail for Sirapob on the grounds that the charges carry a high penalty and he is a flight risk.
TLHR noted, however, that Sirapob's bail request clearly stated that he is a student in a Master's degree programme and has never intended to run.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 24, 2024
- Event Description
Two Pangasinan-based environmental defenders and organizers were violently mauled and dragged into an SUV at about 8 p.m. on March 24 in Barangay Polo, San Carlos, Pangasinan, according to human rights group Karapatan-Central Luzon
Karapatan – Central Luzon said the abduction of Francisco “Eco” Dangla III and Axielle “Jak” Tiong is the seventh and eighth abduction in Central Luzon.
“Similar to all other incidents of abductions and enforced disappearances, the two were victims of terror-tagging and vilification despite being genuine champions of the environment and the people of Pangasinan,” said Karapatan-Central Luzon in a statement.
Both Dangla and Tiong were actively raising awareness on the impact of coal-fired power plants and offshore mining. They campaigned against the revival of the faulty Bataan Nuclear Power Plant and the proposed entry of small modular nuclear reactors, according to scientists’ group Agham – Advocates of Science and Technology for the People.
They are also both co-convenors of the Pangasinan People’s Strike for the Environment, a member organization of the EcoWaste Coalition and the Ecology Ministry of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan.
Dangla is a leader of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Pangasinan and coordinator of Makabayan, while Tiong is national coordinator for Kabataan Partylist (KPL).
“It reflects the worsening state of human rights under the government of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, which continues to silence criticisms against its anti-people programs and policies,” Bayan said in a statement, calling for both activists to be surfaced.
This incident contradicts the claim of Marcos Jr. of “decreased” human rights violations in the Philippines in his recent speeches inside and outside the country. He claims that incidents of human rights violations were “down by half in 2023 as compared to 2022.”
Karapatan noted that the biggest hike in human rights violations is in the number of victims of enforced disappearances: from four in 2022 to 11 in 2023. This is followed by a 58-percent increase in the number of frustrated extra-judicial killings and 46-percent in the extra-judicial killings.
“These figures are enough to dispel Marcos Jr.’s false claims that things are looking better on the human rights front. The only thing that distinguishes Marcos Jr. from Duterte is his conscious cultivation of a more ‘presidential’ image compared to his predecessor’s crassness,” said Karapatan.
The abduction of human rights defenders continuously paints the worsening human rights situation in the country, despite presidential pronouncements. Several local and national organizations are searching for the whereabouts of the two activists.
“We call on the people to provide any relevant information about this case. We enjoin all advocates of civil liberties to denounce this latest attack on the human rights community and to put pressure on authorities to immediately release Eco and Axielle,” Bayan said, holding the government accountable for any harm done to the activists.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Suspected state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 23, 2024
- Event Description
Activist Nawat Liangwattana has been hit with a 6th royal defamation charge for delivering a speech at an August 2023 protest to commemorate those who died in the 2010 crackdown.
Nawat reported to the Pathumwan Police Station last Saturday (23 March) after being informed of the charge, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
The complaint against him was filed by Anon Klinkaew, leader of the ultra-royalist group People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy. Anon has filed several royal defamation complaints against activists and netizens. He has also been involved in attacks on pro-democracy activists and citizen journalists.
The 14 August 2023 protest started from the Pathumwan Intersection and moved to the Ratchaprasong Intersection to commemorate the protesters who died in the 2010 crackdown. In his speech, Nawat called for justice to be given to those who died, stating that “…no one should have been killed by the crown’s bullets.” The plaintiff argued that the statement was made with malicious intent towards the King, a violation of the royal defamation law.
Nawat denied the allegation. As he reported to the police, he was not detained.
The case is his 6th royal defamation charge. The other charges stem from his participation in pro-democracy protests.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 23, 2024
- Event Description
The sister of prominent Tibetan prisoner Dorjee Tashi condemns police for destroying phone evidence of their brutality
Tibet Watch has learned that Gonmo Kyi, sister of the high-profile Tibetan prisoner Dorjee Tashi, was severely beaten by police this weekend.
The police assault followed her latest solo protest in front of the Tibet Higher People’s Court in Lhasa on 19 and 20 March, in which she again called for a retrial for her brother.
The incident comes two months after Gonmo held a sit-in protest in front of the same court holding up a paper that says “Dorjee Tashi is innocent!”, and a portrait of Xi Jinping in her lap.
Broken phone of Gonmo Kyi containing evidence of police brutality
In the videos Tibet Watch received, Gonmo Kyi shows injuries she sustained and condemns the authorities for breaking her phone, which she says contained evidence of police brutality committed her.
“You [the authorities] robbed my mobile phone and broke it to conceal the evidence, illegally arrested me and illegally beat me. Youalways propagandised that I have been freely coming to protest and freely going. But each time I came to protest requesting a fair trial for my brother’s [Dorjee Tashi] case, you arrested me and beat me. Then you broke my mobile phone to conceal the evidence”.
Another video shows the paper that says “Dorjee Tashi is innocent!” on a table and she makes the recording in which she condemns the injustice of using political crime against her brother: “You [the authorities] forcefully put a black hat on a white person [Dorjee Tashi]. You don’t have any evidence that Dorjee Tashi has committed a crime. If you have any evidence, please show us and prove it! Dorjee Tashi didn’t do such criminal offences, therefore, you evaded retrial of his case for many years!”
Gonmo Kyi has been appealing to see her imprisoned brother, Dorjee Tashi, and for him to be given a retrial.
During her protests, she has been beaten and threatened. In December, she was detained by police for one week. She has nevertheless continued her protests.
Dorjee Tashi was arrested in 2008 and charged with loan fraud. His family and those following his case vigorously contest these charges.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 22, 2024
- Event Description
Huynh Ngoc Chenh, husband of Nguyen Thuy Hanh, told Project88 that on March 10 he was called to the police station to file paperwork that would allow him to bring Hanh home for cancer treatment, provided that she remain at the residence where she was living at the time of her arrest. However, that apartment had since been leased to another tenant, and the lease would not expire until March 18. Chenh told the police he would try to negotiate with the tenant to end the lease early so his wife could move back to that residence; however, that effort failed. Then on March 17, he called the authorities to let them know that he could take Hanh home on March 18, but received no response from them. Then on March 22, after Hanh’s radiation therapy, the authorities went to K Hospital and read an order to continue Hanh’s “temporary detention” for another three months. She was then taken back to the jail on 2 Thuong Tin St. It is not clear why Hanh’s family was given such false hopes.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to health, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 22, 2024
- Event Description
Sorbatua Siallagan, an Indigenous elder on Sumatra, was abducted for wanting to keep the paper industry out of his people’s forest. Protests have been going on for days demanding the closure of pulp giant Toba Pulp Lestari.
Protesters have been gathering in front of the police building in Medan, a city of one million on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, since March 23, 2024. People are singing, holding banners and shouting “Free Sorbatua Siallagan!” – “Close down Toba Pulp Lestari!” – “Stop criminalizing Indigenous peoples!”
Sorbatua Siallagan, the leader of Dolok Parmonangan, an Indigenous Batak community, is 65 years old. On the morning of March 22, he was shopping with his wife when ten people in civilian clothes approached him, dragged him into a car and took him away without a warrant. His family and village did not know what had happened to him.
Only in the evening did they learn that Sorbatua Siallagan had been taken to a jail in Medan, 160 km away. He was interrogated without a lawyer present, said Roganda Simanjuntak of our partner organization AMAN Tano Batak (Alliance of Indigenous People in the Land of Batak) in an interview with Rainforest Rescue. Siallagan is accused of “illegal activities”. He allegedly carried out agricultural activities in a forest that was part of the concession of the pulp company Toba Pulp Lestari.
The Indigenous Batak say the land and forest are their ancestral territory, and that they have lived there for thousands of years. But for the Indonesian government, forests are state property – except for small Indigenous forests. The state grants concessions to companies without regard for centuries of settlement and traditional rights.
In the 1980s, Toba Pulp Lestari (TPL) was established south of Lake Toba, the largest crater lake in the world. TPL built plants for the production of paper, pulp and viscose and was granted a concession for hundreds of thousands of hectares of forest by the state. First, vast amounts of tropical wood disappeared into the paper mill, then fast-growing eucalyptus plantations were established – at the expense of nature and local communities.
The brutal destruction of forests, water pollution, land grabbing and violence against local people met with fierce resistance from the start. Hundreds of land disputes remain unresolved to this day.
But “Toba Pulp Lestari continues to use the police to intimidate the Indigenous people into fighting for their land,” says Hengky Manalu of AMAN Tano Batak. He suspects that the criminalization of the Indigenous leader is based on a complaint filed by Toba Pulp Lestari. This is not the first time that Sorbatua Siallagan has been arrested.
The demonstration in Medan shows both the desperation and the determination of the participants, because their very existence is at stake. The case of Sorbatua Siallagan also stands for many similar cases: the struggle of the people for their land and forest rights, their gardens and their forest. The Indigenous peoples of Indonesia are on the losing side of the race to make way for land for plantations and mines.
Toba Pulp Lestari is controlled by one of Indonesia’s richest men, Sukanto Tanoto. His Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) business empire includes the APRIL Group (Asia Pacific Resources International Limited). APRIL, one of the world’s largest pulp companies, produces paper, pulp and viscose in several large plants on Sumatra. APRIL pulp is also used in Chinese paper mills.
In response to increasing global paper consumption, especially since the COVID pandemic, APRIL/RGE is expanding into China, Europe and Latin America. The group has bought into Brazil, the facilities on Sumatran mills are being expanded, and a new mill is being built on Borneo, in the province of North Kalimantan. Another company linked to APRIL/RGE, Mayawana Persada, is currently destroying an orangutan forest for paper.
Years of negotiations with major environmental organizations have failed to change the company’s practices. Investors and buyers should not do business with APRIL/RGE.
The immense consumption of paper must stop! Rainforest Rescue stands in solidarity with the demands of the protesters in Medan:
Stop criminalizing Indigenous people and environmental defenders!
Free Sorbatua Siallagan!
Close down Toba Pulp Lestari!
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Indigenous peoples' rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 21, 2024
- Event Description
Activist Parit Chiwarak has been accused of royal defamation for posting a critique of a Constitutional Court ruling that former Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha had not violated the constitution by continuing to live in army housing after his retirement.
According to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), Parit reported to the police yesterday (21 March) after receiving a summons in February. He was informed by the inquiry officer that he had been accused of royal defamation and violation of the Computer Crimes Act for social media posts about a December 2020 Constitutional Court ruling that Gen Prayut’s occupation of army housing after retirement did not constitute a conflict of interest and was therefore not a violation of the Constitution.
The complaint against Parit was reportedly filed in December 2021 by former Phalang Pracharath MP Pareena Kraikupt, who claimed she saw four Facebook posts from an account with Parit’s name on it criticizing the ruling, discussing King Vajiralongkorn, and utilising a quote about judges that has often been attributed to the late King Bhumibol.
Pareena reportedly filed the complaint because she believed that Parit was the owner of the Facebook page and felt that his posts defamed King Vajiralongkorn.
Parit denied all charges. He also refused to be fingerprinted, requesting that the police uses his citizen ID number to check his identity and criminal record instead. He felt that there was no need to use his fingerprint in the investigation but the police told him that he would be charged with refusing to follow an officer’s order if he did not cooperate.
This the 25th royal defamation charge filed against Parit. TLHR noted that the summons was issued several years after the complaint was filed. They also noted that in November 2023, Pareena claimed she had withdrawn her complaint against Parit.
As a result of the posts, Parit was also accused of insulting the court, but the public prosecutor decided not to indict him.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 21, 2024
- Event Description
Junaidi Marpaung's house, a journalist for one of the online media in Labuhanbatu Regency, North Sumatra (Sumut) on Jalan Aekmatio Talsim Gang Damai, Rantau Utara District, was allegedly burned by unknown people or OTK on Thursday morning, March 21, 2024.
Before the incident, he claimed to have received threats on social media after conducting investigative coverage of drug trafficking in four different places in Labuhanbatu for two days March 16, 2024 and March 17, 2024. He kept evidence of threats from one Facebook user by including a photo of Junaidi.
"I did journalistic work for two days by trying to uncover drug trafficking and fuel smuggling in Labuhanbatu. I visited two places in South Rantau Subdistrict, precisely in an area called Kandang Lembu and witnessed up close the drug transactions in the stalls prepared by drug dealers there." Junaidi told Tempo, Friday, March 22, 2024.
Junaidi added that the two drug trafficking stalls in Labuhanbatu are backed by strong people who also manage fuel oil smuggling.
Information on drug trafficking in Labuhanbatu, said Junaidi, he obtained from residents. To prove this, Junaidi invited one of his colleagues to conduct investigations in four locations.
"Two locations in South Rantau District and two more locations in the capital of Labuhanbatu, Rantauprapat. We will make the rampant drug stalls in Labuhanbatu the topic of investigative coverage in the media www.utamanews.com. However, my house and car were burned last night at around 00.45 WIB before our drug trafficking investigation report was released," said Junaidi.
Chairman of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) North Sumatra Farianda Sinik said, PWI prepared legal steps for the protection of the safety of Junaidi's life and his family until the investigation and investigation of the burning of Junaidi's house and car was handled by the police.
"Junaidi is a PWI member in Labuhanbatu and he experienced violence and intimidation as a result of the coverage of the disclosure of drug trafficking and illegal fuel. Therefore, I conveyed this incident to the North Sumatra Police Chief and the police have followed up by sending Forensic Laboratory personnel from the North Sumatra Police," said Farianda Sinik.
Head of Public Relations of the North Sumatra Police Commissioner Hadi Wahyudi said the Forensic Laboratory Team (Labfor) was conducting crime scene processing at Junaidi Marpaung's residence. "The Labfor team is conducting crime scene investigations as well as collecting formal and material evidence as material for the investigation into the fire at the journalist's house in Labuhanbatu," said Hadi Wahyudi.
According to Hadi, the results of the crime scene will be a clue for investigators to find out whether there was a deliberate burning of Junaidi's house and car. The crime scene, said Hadi, was carried out by North Sumatra Police personnel together with Labuhanbatu Police to investigate where the initial fire spread to. From the crime scene, continued Hadi, investigators will find out whether there is an element of intent or not in the incident before naming a suspect.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Online Attack and Harassment, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to property
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 20, 2024
- Event Description
The Criminal Court ruled yesterday (20 March) to continue detaining activists Tantawan Tuatulanon and Nutanon Chaimahabut, who have been on a hunger strike for over a month, for 12 more days, as the police claims they are still gathering evidence.
Lawyer Kritsadang Nutcharus said that an inquiry officer from Din Daeng Police Station filed a request for the Court to extend its detention order on the grounds that the police are still examining whether dashcam footage given by an eyewitness had been manipulated.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) noted that, when filing a previous detention request on 8 March, the police also claimed that they were still waiting for the footage examination result and told the Court that the examination should be done within a week.
Tantawan and Nutanon were arrested on 13 February on several charges, including sedition, for allegedly honking at and blocking a royal motorcade and for posting dash cam footage of the incident. They have been repeatedly denied bail.
To call for a reform of the justice system, an end to the detention of dissidents, and for Thailand to denied its bid for a seat in the UN Human Rights Council, the two activists have been on a hunger strike since the first day of their detention and are refusing medical intervention. Tantawan is now held at Thammasat University Hospital. TLHR said that she has ketoacidosis and that she has signed a document stating that she does not consent to receiving fluid or nutrients if she loses consciousness. A doctor reportedly told Tantawan that she could go into shock or lose consciousness if she continues her hunger strike. She insists on continuing to refuse food, nutrients or sugar water, and is only drinking a small amount of water each day.
Meanwhile, Nutanon is held at the Corrections Hospital. TLHR said an infection was found in his intestine, but he refused to take medication. He is also refusing food and is only drinking a small amount of water each day.
In a Facebook post on 11 February, Tantawan said that she did not block or cut off the motorcade. She also said she did not know that there was going to be a motorcade. She was on the way back from a funeral and admitted that she was speeding because she was in a hurry.
The dashcam footage shows the vehicle stuck in traffic. The car’s horn can be heard when it moved to the front of the line and the lane was blocked by a police vehicle. The footage also shows that the vehicle was stuck behind another police vehicle while at the exit from the expressway. A police officer can be seen approaching the vehicle before Tantawan is heard arguing.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to health, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Mar 20, 2024
- Event Description
Kyrgyz activist Askat Jetigen has been sent to pretrial detention for at least two months while an investigation into his alleged calls for mass unrest continues. The decision by a Bishkek court on March 20 came just two days after Jetigen, who was initially detained over the weekend, was released from custody and ordered not leave the country. Jetigen is known for his criticism of the Kyrgyz government. His last video criticizing reforms by the Culture Ministry aired on March 15. Human rights groups have criticized the Kyrgyz government for using the charge "calls for mass unrest" as a tool to muzzle dissent.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Artist, Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Mar 20, 2024
- Event Description
Twenty-nine persons including 02 Buddhist monks and 03 females have been arrested during the protest staged by the ‘Jana Aragala Viyaparaya’ in Pettah today (20), police said.
It is reported that Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) activist Duminda Nagamuwa and youth activist Lahiru Weerasekara are among those arrested during the protest.
Meanwhile, at least 05 police officers have been injured during the clashes with protesters, according to police.
Earlier, police had resorted to using tear gas and water cannons to disperse the protesters in Pettah, Colombo.
The demonstration had been organized by the ‘Jana Aragala Viyaparaya’ (People’s Struggle Movement) based on several issues including the soaring cost of living and certain foreign agreements.
The protest march had commenced from near the Fort Railway Station and they were heading in the direction of Pettah when riot police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them, Ada Derana reporter said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Mar 20, 2024
- Event Description
A surgeon was detained in Kabul on 20 March 2024 by Taliban intelligence personnel. He had reportedly recently criticized the Taliban’s ban on girls’ education while being interviewed on a television program. He was reportedly released on bail after guaranteeing he would end his criticism.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
SRMO Afghanistan Civic Space Quarterly Report (January - March 2024)
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 20, 2024
- Event Description
Two ethnic Khmer Krom activists who were arrested last year on suspicion of distributing books about indigenous peoples’ rights were sentenced to prison on Wednesday by a Vietnamese court.
Nearly 1.3-million Khmer Krom live in a part of Vietnam that was once southeastern Cambodia. They have faced serious restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly and movement.
The Cau Ngang District People’s Court in southern Vietnam’s Tra Vinh province convicted To Hoang Chuong, 38, and Thach Cuong, 37, of “abusing democratic freedoms” under Article 331, a section of the penal code used by the government to silence dissenting voices.
Chuong received a four-year sentence and Cuong was given three-and-a-half years in prison, state media reported.
Last month, a court in neighboring Soc Trang province sentenced Danh Minh Quang, 34, to three-and-a-half years in prison on the same charge.
Quang was arrested in July 2023 as part of the same investigation as Chuong and Cuong.
Police in both provinces told local media that the men passed out copies of the United Nations’ “Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” which states that indigenous peoples have the right to maintain and develop their political, economic and social systems or institutions.
Prosecutors last month said that Quang used his personal Facebook account to post comments and live-stream videos that “violated Vietnam laws.”
The indictments for Cuong and Chuong also accused them of using their Facebook accounts to live-stream videos and to post and share photos and video clips, according to the Tra Vinh newspaper.
The contents of the articles, photos and video clips “affected the national and religious unity, distorted the history of Vietnam and the authorities and insulted the prestige” of police and local authorities, according to the Tra Vinh provincial Department of Information and Culture.
‘The reality of suppression’
A Khmer Krom resident of Vietnam who follows Chuong on Facebook told Radio Free Asia on condition of anonymity that he never saw any posts from Chuong that opposed the Vietnamese government.
“They reflected the reality of suppression against the Khmer community in southern Vietnam,” he said.
There was no information about whether Chuong and Cuong had a defense attorney present during Wednesday’s trial.
Khmer Kampuchea Krom for Human Rights and Development Association Secretary General Son Chum Chuon said the severe sentences were unfair and were particularly unjust if the two men were tried without access to a lawyer.
“These allegations are contrary to their actual activities,” he told RFA. “That is why we urged the Vietnamese government or the court to give them a lawyer.”
Josef Benedict, Asia Pacific civil space advocacy expert for rights group CIVICUS, called Wednesday’s convictions “an outrageous travesty of justice.”
“Both were targeted for their advocacy of the rights of the Khmer Krom community and should have never been brought to court,” he said.
Human Rights Watch Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson called the charges “bogus,” saying they were designed to stop the Khmer Krom activists exercising their civil and political rights.
"Article 331 is a perfect example of the total injustice perpetrated by the government because they can use this charge to criminalize virtually anything the authorities don't like,” he said.
“The lapdog Vietnamese courts do whatever they are told to do by the ruling party, and the ordinary Khmer Krom people who stand up for their communities, their religion and their culture have no chance to escape being sent to prison.”
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 19, 2024
- Event Description
Daniel Frits Maurits Tangkilisan, a resident of Karimunjawa, Jepara Regency, who objected against shrimp farming, was indicted for ten months' imprisonment. The indictment was read out by the prosecutor in a hate speech trial under the Electronic Information and Transaction Law (EIT Law) that ensnared Daniel at the Jepara District Court on Tuesday, March 19, 2024.
In a copy of the indictment Tempo obtained, Daniel was charged with violating Article 45A Paragraph 2 in conjunction with Article 28 Paragraph 2 of Law number 19 of 2016 concerning amendments to Law number 11 of 2008 concerning EIT.
"Imprisonment for 10 months minus the detention period already served by the defendant and a fine of IDR 5 million, provided that if the fine is not paid, it will be replaced by one month of imprisonment," read the indictment quoted on Wednesday, March 20, 2024.
Daniel was reported for his comments on Facebook. Daniel initially uploaded a 6:03-minute video on his Facebook account on November 12, 2022. The video shows the condition of the Karimunjawa coast which is affected by shrimp pond waste.
A number of accounts then commented on the upload, both pro and con. Daniel replied to one of the comments with the sentence, "The shrimp brain community enjoys eating free shrimp while being eaten by farmers. In essence, the brain shrimp community is just like the shrimp farm itself. Fed deliciously, a lot, and regularly to be harvested."
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 19, 2024
- Event Description
ARAPATAN deplores the latest examples of the Marcos Jr. regime’s weaponization of the twin terror laws – Republic Act No. 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of 2020 and Republic Act No. 10168 of the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012 – to criminalize dissent and demonize activists.
On January 19, 2024, the investigating prosecutor of Cabanatuan City recommended the indictment of, among others, four activists for alleged violation of the ATA. They are Makabayan secretary general Nathaniel Santiago, Anakpawis campaign director Servillano “Jun” Luna, Jr., ASCENT convenor and development worker Rosario Brenda Gonzalez and Bulacan ecumenical forum volunteer lay worker Anasusa San Gabriel.
The fabricated ATA violation charge stems from their alleged participation in an armed encounter between the New People’s Army and the 84th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army in Barangay San Fernando, Laur, Nueva Ecija on October 8, 2023.
As in many other cases of this nature, the respondents were not given a chance to present evidence in their behalf because the subpoenas were sent to different addresses and not to their known and true addresses. Granted a postponement by the provincial prosecutor, they are set to file their counter-affidavits tomorrow, May 3, 2024.
Meanwhile, in Negros Occidental, a police sergeant filed a trumped up complaint last March 19, 2024 against activists and development workers Clarissa Ramos, Felipe Levy Gelle Jr., Darryl Albañez and Federico Salvilla for alleged terrorist financing. Albañez was the former secretary general of Karapatan-Negros and the September 21 Movement, while Clarissa Ramos is the widow of Atty. Benjamin Ramos, a human rights lawyer brutally killed by suspected state agents in Kabankalan, Negros Occidental on November 6, 2018. In addition to being human rights defenders, the respondents are all current or active officers or members or had collaborated on development projects under the Paghida-et sa Kauswagan Development Group Inc., a Negros-based institution focused on promoting sustainable agriculture programs.
The respondents have been directed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to submit their counter-affidavits on May 10, 2024.
These complaints have been publicly known after trumped up terrorism financing cases against two young paralegals were reported from Southern Tagalog. At least 98 activists have faced complaints or court charges based on the twin terror laws.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Mar 18, 2024
- Event Description
On March 18, three more farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana borders as a part of the ‘Delhi Chalo’ died, bringing the death toll since the protest started to a total of ten. Two of the deceased farmers were aged, between the age of 75-80, while the third farmer was 40-years-old. As provided by the report of Hindustan Times, the farmer union leaders have blamed the deaths of the farmers upon the toxic air emanating from tear gas shells fired by the police that the farmers are being forced to inhale on both Shambhu and Khanouri borders. Due to the tear gas shells, the farmers have allegedly been facing breathing issues.
More about the deceased farmers:
Farmer Balkar Singh, aged 76, belonged to the Ajnala block of Amritsar. As per a report of the Times of India, Balkar breathed his last breath on Monday at the Rajpura railway station while waiting for the Shan-e-Punjab Express. As per the report, he was going home due to his ill health. It has been reported that Balkar Singh had expressed his wish to go home for a few days as he was feeling unwell. In the TOI report, Rajpura government railway police (GRP) assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Sukhwant Singh has provided that Balkar Singh was moved to hospital after alert.
Responding to Balkar’s death, Sarvan Singh Pandher of the Kisan-Mazdur Mukti Morcha (KMM) said that “Balkar was part of the Shambhu since it was pitched, and he died waiting to get home to his three sons and a daughter.”
Another elder farmer name Bishan Singh, aged 75, of Khandoor village in Pakhowal block of Ludhiana district, died on the same day as Balkar Singh after suffering from cardiac arrest. As claimed by the farmers leaders Bishan was associated with Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Sidhupur) farmer union and had stayed at Shambhu border since the beginning of farmers’ “Delhi Chalo” protest.
According to a separate TOI report, other farmers provided had that the deceased was facing breathing problems for the past few days after facing tear gas shells and smoke. He was moved to Rajpura’s govt hospital and declared dead after breathing issues.
Karamjit Singh Pakhowal block general secretary of BKU Ekta Sidhupur stated that “Bishan Singh faced breathing problems in the wee hours of Monday following which he was rushed to government hospital in Rajpura where doctors declared him dead.”
Pakhowal also provided details about the deceased and his family, and stated “He was unmarried. Bishan was the owner of only one acre of agricultural land and was in debt. He is survived by five brothers and their family members. The brother of the deceased has reached the hospital’s mortuary and a decision over his cremation will be taken soon.”
Rajpura senior medical officer Dr Bidhi Chand referred to both the aforementioned deaths and said that “Both Bishan Singh and Balkar Singh were brought dead to the hospital. The causes of their death will be cleared once we do the autopsy by Tuesday. For now, the bodies are in mortuary.”
The third deceased farmer was identified as Tehal Singh, who died at his residence in Mansa district. As per the report of TOI, Tehal Singh belonged to Bhathlan village in Mansa district, and died on early hours of Monday morning. As per the report, only hours prior to his death, the deceased farmer had returned from the Khanauri border protest.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to life, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- India: youth farmer killed, at least 13 more injured
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 18, 2024
- Event Description
The Special Crimes Directorate of the North Maluku Police has named seven indigenous community members in South Wasile District, East Halmahera Regency, North Maluku Province as suspects.
The seven residents are Estepanus Djojong alias Panus (62 years old) chairman of the Waijoi and Jikomoi customary stakeholders, Septon Djojon alias Ton (42) of Waijoi, Keng Kamariba alias Keng (61) of Waijoi Village, Lifas Gorango alias Rinto (40) of Waijoy Village, Paulus Lasa alias Paul (54), Rifo Bobala alias Rifo (35) of Jikomoi village, Oscar Barera alias Oscar (47) of Jikomoi village.
The naming of the seven Waijoi and Jikomoi residents as suspects is in accordance with the Police Certificate of the North Maluku Police Special Criminal Investigation Directorate, number: B/174/III/2024/Dit Reskrimsus regarding notification of suspect determination. The letter is dated March 18, 2024.
Reporting from Titastory.id which is a partner of Teras.id, the residents of Waijoi and Jikomoi were named as suspects in a case of alleged criminal acts because they were considered to have disturbed and obstructed the mining business activities of PT Wana Kencana Mineral (WKM) as the holder of a Mining Business License (IUP).
One of the residents named as a suspect, Paulus Lasa, a resident of Waijoi, said that the naming of suspects to seven residents of Waijoi and Jikomoi was unnatural and unfair.
According to him, what they are doing is fighting for the rights to the customary land they have been living on. In addition, they consider the company to have lied to the public. They took action to demand an agreement with the company.
Paulus said that their determination as suspects was not in accordance with procedures, where they were examined at the Wasile Selatan Police Station on Nov. 22, 2022.
Then on January 18, 2023, they were summoned as witnesses. Three days later, on January 22, 2023, they were also summoned to attend an invitation at Wasile Police Station, Subaim.
Then suddenly, a case title was held at the Ditreskrimsus Polda North Maluku on January 19, 2024 which finally issued a suspect determination letter on March 18, 2024 as well as the first summons and second summons on March 29, 2024.
Paulus said the presence of PT WKM in 3 villages of Loleba Waijoi, Jikomoi, South Wasile replaced PT KPT Harita Group. PT WKM at that time, said Paulus, had started mining in an area previously released by KPT Harita covering an area of 4 ha, and the remaining 3.8 ha had been mined by WKM.
Because they have carried out activities, residents then demand that the area must be paid by WKM. He said both parties, residents and companies, had agreed an agreement on October 7, 2021.
"The agreement was directly mediated and witnessed by the Forkopimda Haltim, but after the agreement until 2023 there was no realization so the residents came to question the matter to WKM on 17 Nov 2023 and they were promised that 1 week later an answer would be given, but 4 days later they received an invitation letter for clarification from the North Maluku Police on the WKM report," he said.
Rifo Bubala, a resident of Jikomoi, showed evidence of the agreement attached to the minutes of the meeting between representatives of the Loleba, Waijoi and Jikomoi villages with the management of PT Wana Kencana Mineral and PT Format Teknik Mandiri, on Thursday, October 7, 2021 at the sub-district office hall, South Wasile.
The letter contains two points of mutual agreement between PT WKM and community representatives, among others: PT WKM will immediately carry out mining and ore barging / shipping activities in the 7.8 Ha area on Monday, October 11, 2021, for this reason PT WKM / PT FTM will pay the remaining compensation funds of IDR.75 million no later than 30 days after mining activities are carried out.
And the second point is, before mining activities are carried out, outside the 7.8 Ha area, PT WKM together with representatives of the Loleba, Waijoi, and Jikomoi villagers must thoroughly discuss matters relating to land compensation funds and planting growth, facilitated by the Regional Government.
"This letter was signed by the Head of Mining Engineering of PT WKM: Adityawarman, Public Relations of PT FTM: Hammid Muhammad, Loleba Village Chief Officer: Arifin Lanasiri, Head of BPD Loleba: Dikson Deni, Head of Jikomoi Village: Anis Canu, Loleba Village Team 11 Chairman: Amos Werimon, Acting Head of Waijoi Village: Nikanor Jawali, Head of BPD Jikomoi: Bernad Komo Komo, Team 10 Chairman of Jikomoi-Waijoi Village: Septon Djojong, Chairman of BPD Waijoi: Salmon Poroco, and Team 18 Chairman of Waijoi-Jikomoi Village: Zet Flory," said this Jikomoi resident, detailing the participants who attended the agreement meeting.
According to them, due to the expansion of nickel mining, many lands belonging to indigenous peoples have been displaced without going through a compensation process. Usually those who resist and protest are intimidated or reported by the company.
- Impact of Event
- 7
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Indigenous peoples' rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Extractive industries
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 17, 2024
- Event Description
Some 200 Myanmar migrant workers were fired from their garment factory jobs in China’s Yunnan province and forced to leave the country after they protested for better pay and working conditions, a labor union leader told Radio Free Asia.
More than 1,000 workers from two garment factories in Yunnan’s Yingjiang city demonstrated on March 17, according to Tin Tin Wai, the co-chairwoman of the New Light Federation of Labor Unions Myanmar.
“We were threatened through interpreters with police arrest if we didn’t stop the protest,” said a worker who identified himself as Super. “The police officers looked like they were about to beat us, but they ended up not hitting any protesters.”
The next day, factory officials demanded that some of the protesters undergo a medical exam, Tin Tin Wai said. The 200 workers who were fired from the Shangcheng and Xinjiahao factories were told they had failed the exam, she said.
They were then immediately driven out of the factory gates to a police station, where they were told to sign a document that said they weren’t fired for protesting, according to one of the workers, Ma Jue.
“They didn’t allow us to take our belongings out of our rooms,” she told RFA. “We were forced to sign a paper that we were voluntarily returning home.”
The workers were then driven back to Myanmar’s Kayin state, Tin Tin Wai said.
No legal recourse
Protesters had demanded that their usual 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. working schedule be scaled back, that they be paid extra for overtime and that they receive a monthly salary of 1,500 yuan (US$208) with an attendance bonus, she said.
They also asked for reasonable output goals and to have Sundays off, she said.
There are more than 1,000 Myanmar migrant workers at the Shangcheng factory and about 300 workers from Myanmar at the Xinjiahao factory.
Because there is no memorandum of understanding between the two governments, Myanmar migrant workers at Chinese garment factories don’t have legal recourse and can be sent home at any time, according to observers of Myanmar labor issues at the Chinese border.
At the Shangcheng and Xinjiahao factories, employment agents who arranged for the workers to come from Myanmar never get involved or take any responsibility when there are disputes between the workers and factory owners, Tin Tin Wai said.
Super told RFA that some Myanmar workers were promised higher salaries than the ones they now receive.
“The Chinese employers offered salaries of 900,000 to 1,000,000 kyats (US$425 to US$475), plus overall expenses for accommodation,” said the worker, who identified himself as Super. “However, the workers did not even get 800,000 kyats (US$380).”
Super said he watched some workers quit because they couldn’t handle all the overtime work and didn’t have access to painkillers or other medicine.
RFA contacted the Chinese Embassy in Yangon and the Myanmar Consulate in Yunnan about last week’s protest, but there was no response.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest, Right to work
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Mar 17, 2024
- Event Description
On 17 March 2024, women human rights defenders Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar, together with other protestors engaged in a peaceful demonstration outside the Larkana Press Club, faced arrest and excessive use of force by Larkana police. The women human rights defenders had gathered peacefully to protest against the lack of justice or effective investigation into the killing of Hidayat Lohar, the father of Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar, on 16 February 2024. Sindh police used excessive force against the protesters, including firing live bullets, baton charges, and tear gas. Several protesters were arrested by police, ten of whom were held for twenty days before being released on bail.
Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar are women human rights defenders and the founders of the Voice of Missing Persons of Sindh, an organization aimed at supporting victims of enforced disappearances and their families to seek justice. Their father, Hidayat Lohar, was forcibly disappeared in 2017 and held for two years until 2019. The women human rights defenders have played a key role in advocating for their father’s release and have also supported other families to seek justice and truth about the fate and whereabouts of victims of enforced disappearances. Sasui Lohar, Sorath Lohar, and their family have faced reprisals, including legal persecution, surveillance, threats, and harassment due to their human rights work.
On 16 February 2024, Hidayat Lohar was killed by unidentified gunmen while traveling to work in Nasirabad city, Sindh province. To date, no effective action has been taken to investigate the crime or hold those responsible to account. For two weeks following the incident, Nasirabad police refused to register a First Information Report (FIR) or commence an investigation. The FIR bearing number 32/2024 was only registered on 2 March 2024, following an order by the Additional Sessions Judge, in Kamber District. Peaceful campaigns by Sasui Lohar, Sorath Lohar, their family members, and other human rights defenders to seek justice have been violently suppressed.
On 17 March 2024, Sasui Lohar, Sorath Lohar, and several other human rights defenders led a peaceful protest outside the Larkana Press Club in Larkana city, in Sindh Province. The protest was against the lack of action taken by police and Sindh authorities to effectively investigate the killing of Hidayat Lohar. Police used brutal and excessive force to disperse the protesters, including baton charges, tear gas, and live bullets. At least ten protesters were injured in the attack. Police arrested several protesters, including Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar, their brothers Sarang Lohar and Sanghaar Lohar, as well as their uncle. The two women human rights defenders and other women protesters were released the same day. However, their siblings and ten other protesters were detained under two FIRs 35/2024 and 34/2024 for twenty days before being granted bail by the anti-terrorism court in Larkana city on 5 April 2024.
Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar have been previously attacked in response to their peaceful campaign for justice for the killing of their father. On 19 February 2024, three days after the assassination, police used excessive force and intimidation against the two women human rights defenders and their supporters as they gathered peacefully in Nasirabad town calling for justice.
Front Line Defenders is extremely concerned about the safety of Sasui Lohar, Sorath Lohar, and for those who faced arrest and violence as reprisals for their peaceful protest. Front Line Defenders has previously issued an appeal calling for accountability for the killing of Hidayat Lohar and an end to reprisals against human rights defenders and their families by authorities in Pakistan. There is a well-documented pattern of reprisals against those documenting and speaking out against state violations, which includes violence and reprisals against family members.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Use of Excessive Force, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 15, 2024
- Event Description
A Vietnamese activist, accused of “propaganda against the State” is being denied access to a lawyer, his family told Radio Free Asia.
Phan Tat Thanh, 38, has been detained since July 2023, charged under Article 117 of the criminal code.
Prosecutors say he used three Facebook accounts to post and distribute content, “propagating information and documents with distorted content, causing confusion among the people, and fabricating and defaming the Communist Party of Vietnam.”
Thanh’s family have been able to meet him twice at a police detention center in Ho Chi Minh City, the first time on Feb. 16, 2024, and the second time on March 15.
Thanh told them that after a detention order expired police investigators issued a second order which lasted until Feb. 7.
Even though the police finished their investigation and transferred the case file to the City Procuracy, Thanh said he had not been allowed to meet the lawyer – Tran Dinh Dung – his family hired for him.
“Lawyer Dung went through all the procedures to request access to the files and contact Thanh. He doesn’t understand why the Procuracy and Security Investigation Department were completely silent and did not respond to him,” Thanh’s father Phan Tat Chi said on Wednesday.
The law states that defense lawyers should be allowed to participate in legal proceedings after the investigation has finished, even in cases relating to alleged violations of national security.
It also stipulates that lawyers are allowed to access documents related to the defense after the end of the investigation in order to take notes and make copies.
Ha Huy Son of the Hanoi Bar Association told RFA lawyers can file a complaint, asking the Procuracy to explain the reason for not allowing the lawyer to contact the client, and can use this to prove prosecutors failed to follow the correct procedures.
Thanh told his father investigators couldn’t find any evidence to convict him and didn’t appear to have any documents to support their case.
He also said he had been beaten by many of the policemen at the detention center.
RFA called the Ho Chi Minh City Procuracy to ask about Mr. Thanh’s case. The person on the phone said the reporter needed to come to the agency, or send a text in order to receive a reply.
Phan Tat Thanh is one of six Facebookers arrested on charges of “anti-state propaganda” last year.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Access to justice
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: social media activist arrested by the police
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Mar 14, 2024
- Event Description
Correspondent at https://shilapatra.com/ Krishna Prasad Bhattarai was manhandled while reporting in Itahari Sub-Metropolitan City on March 14. The metropolitan city lies in the Koshi Province of Nepal.
Freedom Forum talked to reporter Bhattarai about the incident. Bhattarai shared that he had reported a news story about malpractices of the municipality office a day before. The next day, he was manhandled while reporting for the follow-up story in the municipality. As he reached the site, he started taking video of dispute among municipality police and local transport driver.
“Meanwhile, around 14 officers encircled me and one of them pushed me and took my mobile phone. I showed them my press identity card but they did not stop”, reporter Bhattarai said, “They also told me to behave as a journalist. However, they gave me my mobile phone back after a while.”
"I went to the local police station to file a complaint under public offense but they refused to register my complaint”, he said,"Police has informed me that the metropolitan authority has also registered a counter-complaint on March 15 and that they will issue arrest warrant soon."
"Though fellow journalists are discussing with the municipality on the incident, we havenot reached to any understanding", reporter Bhattarai informed.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Country
- Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Initial Date
- Mar 13, 2024
- Event Description
Police arrested a 24-year-old Lao man for posting a video clip on Facebook, criticizing officers in a northern province for demanding bribes from travelers passing through a checkpoint near the Chinese border.
After his arrest, police released a video of the man, identified only as Bee, apologizing for making a false accusation, saying his earlier clip contained “twisted content about the way the police are doing their job.”
However, the audio portion didn’t sync up with the video — the voice didn’t match the mouth movements — making it appear that the audio portion may have been laid over the video.
The video, where Bee sits facing the camera at a wooden desk in a darkened room, appeared on the Phongsaly provincial police’s website.
“The content I posted was actually propaganda slandering the authorities, and it was against the government and the (ruling) party,” the voice says.
“I said that the police were taking bribes,” it says. “In fact, the police didn’t ask for any kickback from me, and I didn’t pay anything to them. For that, I’d like to apologize to the party, government and public.”
The male voice goes on to say that he would be mindful when posting social media content and that authorities could punish him to the fullest extent of the law if he did something wrong again.
When RFA contacted the Phongsaly provincial police, an official said it was not convenient for him to give details about the arrest.
But an employee at the provincial prosecutor’s office told RFA on Tuesday that her office had not yet received a police report about the incident.
Re-educated and released?
Bee, who hails from Khonkeo village in Houeixay district of Bokeo province in northwestern Laos, made his initial critical remarks about the Houeixam checkpoint in Phongsaly province’s Boun Tai district, bordering China, on Feb. 21.
A villager in Boun Tai district where the arrest was made said Bee was not punished, and he had heard that police freed him after he apologized on social media.
“He was not charged with anything more serious — only re-educated then released,” said the villager who requested anonymity out of fear of reprisal for speaking to the media.
Another district resident said police at the checkpoint were strict about checking all passports and IDs.
But a criminal lawyer said Bee was on the “wrong side of the law” by trying to defame authorities online, though the incident was not serious.
When citizens see authorities do something wrong, they should collect evidence and file a formal complaint with other relevant authorities who can investigate, rather than take to social media to criticize them, he said.
RFA has reported other incidents in which Laotians who publicly criticized authorities were arrested, re-educated and jailed or released.
In March 2023, police in Houaphanh province told a woman to apologize and amend a social media post on Facebook in which she said she had paid 95 million kip (US$4,500) for a job on the police force. When apologizing, she said she made a false statement that made police in the province look bad.
In a 2019 incident, Houayheuang Xayabouly, nicknamed Mouay, was sentenced to five years in prison for criticizing the government’s slow response to severe flooding in southern Laos.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 12, 2024
- Event Description
Armed men threatened to shoot Rappler Luzon reporter Joann Manabat and K5 News Olongapo reporter Rowena “Weng” Quejada while covering a violent demolition in Barangay Anunas in Angeles City, Pampanga on Tuesday, March 12.
Some 2,000 residents are fighting to stay in a 73-hectare of land being claimed by Clarkhills Properties Corporation. Demolitions have happened in the area several times, with some turning into violent encounters.
Manabat said men dressed in red and white shirts barred her from entering the area and immediately called her out when they saw her taking videos of the demolition.
“Those in red shirts, from a distance, told me to stop taking videos or else babarilin ako at kukunin yung photos ko (they would shoot me and take my photos),” the reporter said.
After acknowledging the threat, the Rappler reporter left the area with the help of residents who accompanied her away from the armed men.
“I stayed at a house near Balubad Street owned by the relative of the resident I was looking for. I left as soon as it was safe to leave the area,” Manabat added.
Before this, Quejada reportedly went missing during the demolition.
Angeles City Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr. confirmed in a statement on Tuesday evening that armed men harassed Quejada and held her at gunpoint.
“Quejada was covering the ongoing demolition at Sitio Balubad, Barangay Anunas, Angeles City, when accosted by armed men who allegedly questioned her and took her belongings,” the statement read.
According to reports gathered by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, one of the armed men at the demolition pointed a gun at Quejada, telling her to stop taking videos.
“The man also hurled invective, calling the media demonyo (devil) for reporting about the ongoing land dispute,” the NUJP said.
A Japanese national assisted Quejada by hiding her inside of his residence. She was able to leave after tensions in the area subsided.
Lazatin and members of the NUJP have condemned the threats that were made against the journalists.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 12, 2024
- Event Description
KARAPATAN condemns the violent demolition of a peasant community in Sitio Balubad, Barangay Anunas, Angeles City. At least seven persons have reportedly been injured after combined elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and goons hired by Clarkhills Properties Corporation opened fire on the protesting farmers. Even reporters covering the demolition were reportedly harassed and threatened by the raiding team.
Clarkhills Properties has been trying since October 2023 to gain control of a 72-hectare landholding that had already been awarded to the farmers under the government’s agrarian reform program after they had completed paying the required amortization. The Department of Agrarian Reform, however, later voided the Certificate of Land Ownership Award granted to the farmers, leading to a series of violent attempts by Clarkhills Properties to seize the land from the residents.
The area is populated by at least 535 households with some 2,000 families. Before this violent demolition, the residents had been resisting Clarkhills Properties’ demolition teams which have been conducting monthly demolitions since October.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to property, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Mar 12, 2024
- Event Description
Kyrgyzstan authorities should immediately drop charges against current and former Temirov Live staff, release all eight detained journalists, and reverse its crackdown on the independent press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Pervomaisky District Court in the capital, Bishkek, extended by two months the pre-trial detention of Temirov Live director Makhabat Tajibek kyzy and the outlet’s current and former staff members Aike Beishekeyeva, Azamat Ishenbekov, Saipidin Sultanaliev, Aktilek Kaparov, Tynystan Asypbekov, Joodar Buzumov, and Maksat Tajibek uulu, according to news reports.
The court also ordered Temirov Live journalist Sapar Akunbekov and camera operator Akyl Orozbekov released into house arrest and freed the outlet’s former project manager Jumabek Turdaliev under a travel ban.
All 11 continue to face charges of inciting mass unrest, which carries a jail sentence of up to eight years under Article 278, Part 3, of Kyrgyzstan’s criminal code.
“The mass detention of journalists linked to investigative outlet Temirov Live is emblematic of Kyrgyzstan’s intensifying press freedom crisis,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “By extending their incarceration, the country’s authorities are signalling their intention to continue this repressive course.”
In a series of raids on January 16, police searched Temirov Live’s office and the 11 journalists’ homes and arrested the journalists over unspecified videos by Temirov Live and sister project Ait Ait Dese. Court documents reviewed by CPJ accused Tajibek kyzy of “discrediting” state organs in those videos, “which could lead to various forms of mass unrest.”
A local partner of global investigative network Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), Temirov Live is known for its anti-corruption investigations into senior government officials and has more than 265,000 subscribers on its YouTube channels. Authorities deported the outlet’s Kyrgyzstan-born founder Bolot Temirov in 2022 and banned him from entering the country for five years in connection to his reporting.
In recent months, Kyrgyz authorities have launched an unprecedented crackdown on independent reporting in a country previously seen as a regional haven for the free press. On January 15, security services raided privately owned news website 24.kg and opened a criminal case for “propaganda of war.” In February, a court shuttered Kloop, another OCCRP partner.
In April 2023, a court ordered the closure of Radio Azattyk, the local service of U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), but reversed the decision in July after the outlet deleted a report that authorities had demanded to be removed.
- Impact of Event
- 11
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment, Travel Restriction
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Kyrgyzstan: major crackdown on independent media
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Mar 12, 2024
- Event Description
On 12 March 2024, the Pervomaisky District Court in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, upheld pre-trial detention for eight human rights defenders and journalists associated with the Temirov Live media outlet and the Ayt Ayt Dese project. They are to remain in Pre-trial Detention Centre #1 until 13 May 2024. Additionally, the court replaced pre-trial detention with a travel ban for three of the individuals.
Among them, Makhabat Tazhibek Kyzy, the Head of Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese, was ordered to remain in detention despite having a 12-year-old son. She, along with journalist Akyn Azamat Ishenbekov, is suspected of organizing "calls for mass civil unrest," which are criminal offenses according to Part 2 of Article 41 and Part 3 of Article 278 of Kyrgyzstan's Criminal Code. Other detained journalists include Ayke Beyshekeeva, Saipidin Sultanaliyev, Aktilek Kaparov, Tynystan Aspbekov, Zhoodar Buzumov, and Maksat Tazhibek Uulu. Three journalists, Saparbek Akunbekov, Aqyl Ozorbekov, and Zhumabek Turdaliyev, were released under a travel ban. If found guilty, Makhabat Tazhibek kyzy and Azamat Ishenbekov can face up to 10 years in prison, while the rest of the human rights defenders can face up to 8 years of imprisonment.
Following their arrest on 16 January 2024, the human rights defenders and journalists were initially held in the Temporary Detention Ward for 12 days. Conditions were poor, lacking heating, showers, and proper bedding. Authorities claimed this delay was due to the need for proper identification documents, though human rigths defender and journalist Bolot Temirov reported that lawyers representing Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese journalists have not received any request to provide additional personal identity documentation from the investigation. He suggested that this 12-days detention in the pre-trial detention ward is an act of additional pressure agains the former and current representatives of the human rights media outlet.
Human rights defenders and journalists associated with Temirov Live and Ayt Ayt Dese also faced defamation, with President Sadyr Japarov labeling them as "bloggers" rather than journalists, accusing them of irresponsibly publishing information that threatens national security.
Front Line Defenders condemns the prosecution of these individuals and believes it is retaliation for their legitimate human rights work. They urge Kyrgyzstan’s authorities to release the detained journalists, close the case, and end the judicial harassment of human rights defenders and independent journalists.
- Impact of Event
- 8
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 11, 2024
- Event Description
Vietnam police have been summoning the wives of political prisoners for questioning over the past week, leading one lawyer to suggest that the Ministry of Public Security has launched a new harassment campaign against relatives of prisoners of conscience.
According to information obtained by Radio Free Asia, police summoned the wives of four prisoners this week: Trinh Thi Nhung, wife of Bui Van Thuan; Le Thi Ha, wife of Dang Dang Phuoc; Do Thi Thu, wife of Trinh Ba Phuong; and Nguyen Thi Tinh, wife of Nguyen Nang Tinh.
The women were questioned about their social media activities.
They also summoned Nguyen Thi Mai, daughter of female prisoner Nguyen Thi Tam.
The five prisoners are serving sentences of between five and 10 years, all for the crime of “propaganda against the state.”
On Tuesday, police also summoned Le Thi Kieu Oanh, wife of former prisoner Pham Minh Hoang, following her trip to France to see her husband.
In 2017, Hoang was stripped of his Vietnamese citizenship and deported after serving a 17-month prison sentence for “activities aimed at overthrowing the government.”
Questioned about Facebook Trinh Thi Nhung was summoned for questioning by the Nghi Son Town Police in Thanh Hoa province on Wednesday morning.
They said they believed she had used the Facebook account “Nhung Trinh” to sign a petition calling for the release of human rights activist Nguyen Thuy Hanh, who has cancer and is being held in a secure mental facility.
Nhung told the police the account was not hers and refused to sign a statement.
Do Thi Thu was asked to visit Ha Dong District Police in Hanoi on Thursday, also in connection with Facebook but she refused.
“I’m not going to meet them there because they've invited me so many times about the same thing,” she said.
“The investigator asked me if the [Thu Do] Facebook account was mine.
“They told me not to share articles related to prisoners of conscience.”
Le Thi Ha was summoned by the Internal Security Department of Dak Lak Provincial Police.
They asked her to come in on Thursday to provide information about her use of social media. She told RFA she would attend even though she doesn’t have a Facebook account.
“I find it annoying,” she told RFA Vietnamese. “It affects my job because I work all day at school and have no time to rest.”
Human rights lawyer Nguyen Van Miem wrote on Facebook, "There seems to be a campaign to harass the wives of prisoners of conscience."
Josef Benedict, Asia Pacific civil space advocacy expert for rights group CIVICUS also criticized Vietnam for harassing families of political prisoners.
"The Vietnamese government must halt the shameful and vindictive campaign of harassment against the wives of political prisoners for their social media posts,” he said.
“Prisoners’ families should not be targeted simply because they seek justice for their loved ones .
Instead they should be able to exercise their basic right to freedom of expression peacefully without fear of reprisal.”
According to Amnesty International, Vietnam currently has more than 250 political prisoners.
Hanoi always claims it has no political prisoners, only those convicted of crimes.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Mar 10, 2024
- Event Description
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders has been informed about the ongoing judicial harassment of Ibrahim Dafadar, a 32-year-old human rights defender from the village of Nawdapara, Murshidabad District, West Bengal State. Mr Dafadar is the Secretary of the local Amra Simantabasi committee. The Amra Simantabasi are resident-based committees representing the interests and defending the rights of the populations living in the areas near the border with Bangladesh. Over the past few years, Mr Dafadar has been engaged in the promotion of social development, the documentation of violations committed by the Border Security Force, and the exposure of local corrupt practices. These activities have made him a target of local politicians and their police associates.
On March 10, 2024, Mr Ibrahim Dafadar received a summons under Section 107 of the Indian Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) through the Bagdah police station, ordering him to appear before the Executive Magistrate of Bongaon District. Section 107 of the CrPC refers to the summoning powers of an Executive Magistrate in cases where there is a well-founded suspicion that a person “is likely to commit a breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquillity or to do any wrongful act that may probably occasion a breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquillity”. Mr Dafadar is unaware of any act he may have committed that would constitute such an offence. He believes that the summons constitutes a retaliation for his human rights work, and that it is part of a plot between local politicians and police officers to implicate him in a fabricated criminal case.
On March 12, 2024, Mr Dafadar appeared before the Executive Magistrate of Bongaon District and was released after paying a bond of INR 1,000 (approx. EUR 11.10). On March 31, 2024, he submitted a complaint to the Superintendent of Police of Bongaon District, alleging an attempt to incriminate him in a trumped-up case. A similar complaint has been filed with the same Superintendent of Police by the residents of Nawdapara in the form of a memorandum signed by nearly 200 heads of family.
The use of summons under Section 107 of the CrPC is a well-known practice in West Bengal State to silence dissent and obstruct human rights work. Ahead of events of public interest – such as religious, social, or political events like administrative elections – it is common for both the lower judiciary and the police in the region to issue summons against human rights defenders and critics of local policies with the aim to intimidate them and force them into silence through judicial harassment. These practices openly contravene India’s international obligations regarding freedom of expression and the protection of human rights defenders, and constitute an unacceptable curtailment of the legitimate work in defence of human rights.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Mar 8, 2024
- Event Description
‘Aurat March Islamabad’ organisers have sought a public apology from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for the ill-treatment of participants by the Islamabad administration on Friday.
The participants gathered in front of the National Press Club on March 8 for the annual Aurat March on International Women’s Day but the administration didn’t allow them to take their usual route towards the D-Chowk. The organisers claimed that the police pushed the participants including pregnant women, children and the elderly.
To protest against the administration’s treatment, the Aurat March Islamabad organisers held an emergency press conference on Saturday and called upon Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to take action against the police brutality and discrimination faced by the Aurat March supporters.
Those who addressed the gathering were Farzana Bari, Bariya Shah, Uzma Yaqoob and Fatima Atif who criticised denial of their rights to assemble and march towards D-Chowk.
“Despite our several attempts to obtain ‘No Objection Certificate’ from Islamabad District Administration, Aurat March had been denied NOC consequently for last five years, which means that state is now acting on its anti-Aurat March policy,” said a statement issued by the organisers.
Addressing the media, the organisers said that every year Aurat March Islamabad supporters face police brutality and violence in the form of baton charge, unwarranted obstruction and intimidation by the district administration and Islamabad Police.
“This year as well, we were pushed back by the police officers and lives of elderly women, pregnant mothers and women with disability were men-handled by the police itself. The police and administration’s action not only violate our constitutional rights but also undermine the principles of democracy and freedom of expression,” they said.
They said that IWD holds profound significance for women across the globe, serving as a reminder of the ongoing struggle for gender equality and justice. “By preventing us from exercising our democratic rights to protest peacefully, the authorities have displayed a blatant disregard for the voices and concerns of women in Pakistan. On the other hand, the administration provided full protocol and access to Haya Marchers which is mobilised every year by the state to prevent Aurat March Islamabad from happening,” they blamed.
The organisers demanded accountability for those responsible for threats against women marchers and an inquiry into why Haya Marchers were protected without an NOC while Aurat March was denied entry.
They called on women parliamentarians to investigate what happened and questioned Bilawal Bhutto for not condemning the Islamabad administration’s treatment.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Mar 8, 2024
- Event Description
Twenty-nine people were charged by the Preah Vihear Provincial Court on 8 March 2024 with “clearing forestland and enclosing it to claim for ownership” under Article 97(6) of the Law on Forestry. Four of the 29 people charged were released on bail, and the remaining 25 have been sent to pre-trial detention in Preah Vihear provincial prison. They include 13 men and 12 women.
The group was arrested earlier this month after mixed armed forces accompanied by forestry administration officials entered a disputed area with tractors intended to clear the land. Authorities fired live ammunition, used a smoke grenade, and arrested villagers.
The charges are the latest development in a longstanding land dispute involving Seladamex Co., Ltd., which affects families from Mrech, Srayang Tboung, and Kdak villages as well as families who have more recently migrated to the area. Seladamex was granted an Economic Land Concession in 2011 in Srayang and Phnum Tbaeng Pir communes in Kuleaen district.
- Impact of Event
- 29
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community), Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 7, 2024
- Event Description
Marikit Saturay, a Dutch-Filipino activist and musician, was detained, red-tagged, and deported after trying to visit her family and friends in the Philippines.
International Filipino rights groups Migrante-Netherlands, Linangan-Willem Geertman Art and Culture Network, and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan)-Europe condemned the recent attacks against Saturay, stressing that it is not the first time that this happened.
Saturay arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on the evening of March 7. She was supposed to visit her relatives and friends, especially her grandmother who will be celebrating her 100th birthday on March 10.
However, a Filipino immigration officer accused her of engaging in “anti-government activities.” She said that she is part of Migrante-Netherlands, an organization of Filipino migrant workers, families, and refugees.
Despite this, the Philippine Bureau of Immigration (BI) continued to disregard her concern and included her in the blacklist order.
“At that point, she was not allowed to exit beyond the Immigration checkpoint. She has been detained at the airport’s immigration holding area since then,” Migrante Netherlands said in a statement, adding that she was detained for three nights without proper sleeping arrangement.
Saturay was also denied access to legal services before she was deported back to the Netherlands.
“She was not allowed to talk to her lawyers, nor was she allowed to receive any family members who wanted to see her to make sure that she was alright. A uniformed agent was also assigned to guard her during the entire detention period,” Migrante – Netherlands said.
A similar incident happened in December 2023 where Anakbayan – Switzerland Chairperson Edna Becher was detained and deported after she arrived in Manila. She was also accused of engaging in “anti-government activities.”
“This pattern of political repression is akin to the Marcos regime’s fascist campaign to criminalize dissent and deserves the condemnation of the international community. Further, this targeted campaign against Filipino migrant activists exposes the Marcos regime’s hypocrisy in milking profit from OFW remittances while at the same time barring migrants from returning to their homeland,” Bayan-Europe said.
Saturay came to the Netherlands in 2006 with her mother, sisters, and brother to join their father who had sought asylum in the country in 2003. This is because of the terror campaign led by Col. Jovito Palparan in the Mindoro region, where her father was based as an environmental activist and human rights worker.
Praised for her sharp and critical lyrics, Saturay used music and songwriting to advocate for the rights of Filipino migrant workers, immigrants, and refugees. She was known for songs “What Did I Do Wrong?” and “Geboren Om Te Strijden” (Born to Struggle).
“Filipino migrant workers will not be cowed into fear by these coercive attacks. We have endured wars, natural disasters, economic hardship, and discrimination of all forms. Wherever we are, we continue to fight for the genuine interests of the Filipino people, even in the face of political repression,” Migrante Netherlands said.
Meanwhile, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. arrived in Europe. His schedule includes a visit to Germany on March 12 and 13. He is expected to go to Prague, Czech Republic for a state visit until March 15. The agenda includes maritime security agreements, bilateral trade, and economic ties.
“This would already be Marcos’ 6th international trip just in 2024, revealing his utter disregard for using taxpayer’s money to finance his junket trips abroad. Instead of deporting and prohibiting the entry of activists and government critics to Manila, Marcos himself should be declared persona non-grata in Europe!” Bayan-Europe said.
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Administrative Harassment, Denial Fair Trial, Deportation, Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of movement, Right to fair trial, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Artist, NGO staff, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Mar 7, 2024
- Event Description
Yesterday, March 7, 2024, KARAPATAN, through its legal counsel, was notified by the Office of the Solicitor General that it intends to appeal the decision of Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 84 Judge Luisito Cortez upholding the acquittal of ten human rights defenders of Karapatan, the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines and Gabriela on charges of perjury. Notably, the OSG’s appeal will be handled by members of the NTF-ELCAC’s (National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict) Legal Cooperation Cluster.
KARAPATAN views this as part of the sick, deluded and obsessive form of judicial harassment by the NTF-ELCAC and former National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. against its officers and fellow human rights defenders. This case, which dates back to 2019, went through preliminary investigation and trial hearings, resulting in our acquittal by Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 139 Judge Aimee Alcera in 2023, and Judge Cortez’s dismissal of the government’s petition for certiorari that same year. Yet, the saga continues to this day.
Such frivolous yet retaliatory charges pursued by government counsels also show how public funds are being wastefully utilized to go after those who defend and uphold human rights. Instead of pursuing cases against corrupt public officials or against police and military officers responsible for the killings of drug suspects or activists, our government lawyers are wasting the people’s money for its campaign against human rights watchdogs.
This, however, is no surprise, considering the NTF-ELCAC’s policy to undertake legal offensives against those whom they perceive as enemies of the State. From the Duterte to the Marcos-Duterte regime, this is the same task force that filed cases of perjury against young environmental activists Jonila Castro and Jhed Tamano. This is the same task force that lauded police and military officers responsible for the Bloody Sunday killings and arrests. This is the same task force that is notorious for red- and terrorist-tagging in the Philippines. This is the same task force that has justified the killings and other human rights violations against peasants, indigenous people, workers and development workers.
As we strongly denounce this continuing harassment against human rights defenders, we reiterate the persistent call for the abolition of the NTF-ELCAC and for an end to the attacks perpetrated under the Marcos-Duterte regime. We shall continue to challenge these attacks and demand justice for all victims of human rights violations.
- Impact of Event
- 10
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- NGO staff, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 7, 2024
- Event Description
A detained pro-democracy activist and protest leader has been hit with additional prison time for royal defamation as a result of a speech he gave at a protest in 2020. Found guilty of royal defamation in two earlier cases, he now faces a total of 7 years and 6 months in jail.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights reports that Shinawat Chankrajang was charged with royal defamation over a protest speech he gave on 21 December 2020 when he and other activists organised a march to the Bangkhen Police Station to support activists facing charges stemming from an earlier demonstration.
The protest leader addressed the need for reform of the monarchy and amendment of the law related to the King’s personal property. As a result of the protest, 7 activists were prosecuted. Three of the defendants - Shinawat, Anon Nampa, and Parit Chiwarak - were charged with royal defamation while the rest were charged with violating the Assembly Act.
During his first witness examination, Shinawat reversed his testimony and decided to plead guilty, resulting in his trial being separated from the others.
The court on Thursday ruled that the activist was guilty as charged. He given 3 years in prison for royal defamation and fined 200 baht for unauthorised use of a sound amplifier. His sentence was later reduced to 1 year and 6 months with a 100 baht fine. Shinawat has been detained since 29 February as a result of an earlier royal defamation trial in which he was sentenced to 3 years in jail without parole. In yet another case stemming from a speech he gave at a protest on 2 December 2020, the activist was also given a 3 year prison sentence without parole. As the court ordered that his sentences be consecutively served Shinawat’s total prison sentence now stands at 7 years and 6 months.
In addition to the above-noted 3 cases, Shinawat faced another royal defamation charge for a speech he gave on on 28 July 2022. In this latter case, he received a suspended sentence.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Mar 7, 2024
- Event Description
The Human Rights Defender Ramadas received a show cause notice from the Registrar's office on 7th March 2024 implicating his activism as repetitive misconducts and anti-national activities. The notice was sent on the HRDs email id as well and his personal email id. The HRD acknowledged the receipt on March 8, 2024. The Committee met on April 04, 2024 in Vice Chancellor, TISS office at 04.30 PM to consider the case of the HRD. The Committee in its findings stated that the HRD Ramadas violated be clause 9 of the honour code of the institute by participating in the Parliament march which was organised by a joint platform of 16 student’s organisations on 12th January, 2024. The HRD participated in the march at his personal level as a Central Executive committee member of the Student’s Federation of India (SFI) and as a member of Progressive Students Forum (PSF). The committee concluded that the HRD participated in the said demonstration and expressed his view because of his status being a PhD student at TISS. The Committee was aggrieved by the fact that the HRD views are creating an impression among the general public that view of the HRD are the views of the TISS. The committee in its report cited a circular dated 14th June, 2024 bearing No. Registrar/Circular/2023 and held that participation of HRD in the parliament march on 12th January, 2024 badly affected the reputation of TISS among the general public and the HRD violated the code of conduct of the institute. The report further stated that “he supposed to focus on his academics but, his act of participating in demonstrations, organising unapproved events, screenings, holding sitting, in addition to being illegal, is also wastage of limited resources of the Institute.” Based on this the committee held that the HRD's conduct is “motivated with personal political ambitions and to further the same, the Institute’s name and resources in being misused by HRD". The report concluded that the HRD by organising parliament March on 12th January, 2024, screening banned documentaries, calling controversial speakers for Bhagat Singh Memorial Lectures, holding sit-ins in from the directors Bungalow at the late night, etc are the actions which must be investigated by law enforcement agencies as Anti national activities. The committee declared that law enforcement agencies can take legal actions as per process and institute and TISS have no objection for the same. The Committee recommended suspension for the period of two years and his entry to be debarred across all the campus of the Tata Institute of Social sciences. HRDA strongly believes that the suspension of the HRD for participating in a protest organised by the joint platform of 16 student organisations, screening a national award-winning documentary 'Ram ke Naam' by Anand Patwardhan that has been officially screened in TISS multiple times & publicly available in YouTube, inviting well-known academics, scholars and human rights activists of a memorial lecture and peacefully holding sit-in in campus as ‘anti-national’ along with issuing no objection for law enforcement agencies to take legal action is an act of reprisal for his activism. Human Rights Defenders' Alert - India urge the National Human Rights Commission to take cognisance of the case and United Nations Special Procedures to issue a public statement condemning the suspension of the Human Rights Defender and implicating his activism as repetitive misconducts and ‘anti-national activities’.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to education, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Mar 6, 2024
- Event Description
A group of mixed armed forces including gendarmes and police officers accompanied by forestry administration officials mobilised this morning to secure disputed land in Preah Vihear province, resulting in the use of live ammunition and arrests.
A number of villagers have reportedly been arrested and taken to Preah Vihear provincial capital. Their current location is unknown.
Villagers reported that mixed forces armed with automatic rifles had entered the area shortly before dawn, and were accompanied by tractors to clear the disputed land. Fearful of property destruction and forced evictions, villagers gathered to demand the forces leave the area. A confrontation ensued in which a video captured live ammunition being shot repeatedly by authorities as well as the use of a smoke grenade.
The land dispute in question involves Seladamex Co., Ltd., and impacts families from neighbouring Mrech, Srayang Tboung, and Kdak villages as well as families who have more recently migrated to the area.
Seladamex had been granted an Economic Land Concession in March 2011 in Srayang and Phnum Tbaeng Pir communes in Preah Vihear’s Kuleaen district. The concession led to land conflicts with hundreds of families who were already living in the area. In 2022, representatives of 131 impacted families reported that their belongings and crops had been destroyed by authorities on behalf of the company.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Mar 6, 2024
- Event Description
Sri Lankan authorities must immediately drop their investigations into journalists G.P. Nissanka and Bimal Ruhunage and allow them to report without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday.
On March 6, police arrested freelance journalist Bimal Ruhunage from his home in the Kurunegala district of North Western Province, according to the Media Organizations Collective statement, as well as the journalist and his lawyer Keerthi Dunusinghe, who spoke to CPJ.
Police also seized Ruhunage’s mobile phone and wallet, which were returned to his wife later that day, the journalist said.
Ruhunage said he arrived at a local bus station four days prior, wearing his press identification card, to interview a mother seeking to give her child up for adoption. However, a police officer attempted to stop the journalist from filming them. Ruhunage continued to film as the officer took the mother and child to a police station in a three-wheeler taxi, footage of which was published by the U.S.-based news website Boston Lanka.
Following his arrest, Ruhunage was held in police remand until March 11, when he was released on bail, according to the journalist and his lawyer. Ruhunage has been ordered to appear in court on May 13.
“The arrests and criminal investigations launched into Sri Lankan journalists G.P. Nissanka and Bimal Ruhunage are unacceptable reactions by authorities and could create a chilling effect on the media,” said CPJ Program Director Carlos Martinez de la Serna. “Sri Lankan journalists should not fear detention, seizure of their devices, or criminal cases for their work ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections to be held later this year.”
Egodamahawatta and Dunusinghe told CPJ that their clients were remanded into police custody despite being investigated for bailable offenses.
Nissanka stands accused of violating section 6 of the Computer Crime Act related to offenses committed against national security and a section of the police ordinance related to spreading false reports to create alarm and panic, Egodamahawatta said.
Separately, Ruhunage said that police informed him at the time of his arrest that he was being investigated for obstruction of police duties. However, the police complaint filed in court cited a section of the penal code pertaining to the use of criminal force to deter a public officer from discharge of duty, according to the journalist and his lawyer.
Ruhunage told CPJ that a police source informed him that the journalist was suspected of authoring a Voice of Sri Lanka report alleging that a senior police official did not disclose his ownership of a hotel in what may be an ethics violation.
Ministry of Defense spokesperson Nalin Herath did not respond to CPJ’s emailed request for comment. CPJ also called and messaged police spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa for comment but did not receive any response.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 6, 2024
- Event Description
Vietnamese state media declared two human rights organisations as terrorist groups on 6 March.
The groups are the North Carolina-headquartered Montagnard Support Group Inc (MSGI) and Montagnard Stand for Justice (MSFJ), which was established in Thailand. Both organisations specialise in defending the rights of the Montagnard minority ethnic group.
The majority of Montagnards are Christians and live in Vietnam’s central highlands. The community has a long history of conflict with the Vietnamese government and have faced intense harassment and intimidation since a June 2023 attack on provincial Communist party offices in Dak Lak that left nine dead, including local party officials and police.
The MSGI and MSFJ are accused of having helped plan the attack in Dak Lak, but leaders of both groups strongly deny these allegations.
The Vietnamese government’s press release named several human rights activists as terrorists and threatened that anyone working with them would face similar charges. It went on to give the personal home addresses of several key human rights figures in Thailand and the US.
CSW's Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘The government of Vietnam is endangering the lives of human rights defenders by naming them and sharing their addresses on state media, which poses an immediate security concern and is clearly intended to silence, harass and intimidate. The government of Vietnam is an authoritarian state that is paranoid that the world will know the true nature of their control and repression of religious and ethnic minorities, and this is further evidence of its lack of inhibitions in participating in transnational repression against activists who are simply exercising their right to freedom of expression. CSW rejects the designation of the MSGI and MSFJ as terrorist organisations and we call on the Vietnamese government to recognise human rights groups as legitimate voices in any healthy civil society.’
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Freedom of religion/belief activist, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Mar 6, 2024
- Event Description
The convenor of the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) Madushan Chandrajith was arrested after the Police dispersed a protest staged in Colombo, on Wednesday.
The Police fired water cannons on the protest organised by the IUSF in Borella.
A confrontation took place between the Police and the protesters when the protesters were blocked near the Colombo National Hospital.
The Police later fired water on the protesters and surrounded Chandrajith and arrested him.
Some minor staff of the hospital were seen objecting to the arrest.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
During a protest held in front of the University of Colombo, tensions escalated as a group, which included members of the University of Peradeniya Student Union, clashed with the police.
A protest took place opposite the University of Colombo, organized by the University of Peradeniya Students’ Union.
The protest aimed to address the erosion of fundamental rights that impact the general population, including access to free education and healthcare.
Notably, students from various other universities across the island also participated in this demonstration.
Earlier in the day, the Cinnamon Gardens Police made a formal request to the Colombo Chief Magistrate, Prasanna Alwis, seeking an order to halt a protest march organized by several university student bodies. However, the Magistrate rejected the request.
Multiple buses carrying students from University of Peradeniya underwent repeated inspections by the police during their journey.
Later in the afternoon, student activists congregated near thr Colombo University to voice their grievances. The police advised them not to obstruct the road.
Despite the police instructions, the students persisted with their protest march. Consequently, measures were taken to disperse the group.
Subsequently, the police deployed water cannons and tear gas to disperse the students.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Workers laid off from three garment production companies marched from the Democracy Monument to Government House today (5 March) to demand severance pay. They asked the government to cover the severance and press charges against the companies.
The workers were formerly employed by Alpha Spinning, AMC Spinning, and Body Fashion garment production companies. A total of over 1400 workers were laid off by the three companies.
The workers issued a statement saying that, since 2019, Body Fashion has laid off 1,174 people. In June 2023, Alpha Spinning laid off 132 people and AMC Spinning laid off another 153 people. None of the workers received severance from their former employers, and the Ministry of Labour was not able to demand that the companies pay the severance as required by the Labour Protection Law. The workers estimated that their former employers now owe them around 279 million baht.
The statement noted that the workers met with representatives of the Ministry of Labour on 22 December 2023, after two days of protest. Ministry representatives promised to ask the Cabinet to allocate an emergency budget to cover worker compensation until the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare raises money paid into the Employee Fund by those who were laid off and did not receive severance.
The authorities reportedly did not follow through on their promises, however. The Ministry did not press charges against the company and did not try to ensure that the workers were paid. The labour minister also reportedly did not follow the government’s policy to strictly enforce labour laws.
The workers demand that the government cover their severance at the rate ordered by the labour inspection officer. They also want the government to press charges against the companies to make them return any money the government spends on the severance to show that labour rights violators in Thailand cannot act with impunity.
A Body Fashion worker told iLaw that, for the past five years, workers have filed complaints with the Ministry of Labour, parliament, and the Labour Court but have not been paid, even though the court ordered their former employer to compensate them. Many workers were reportedly also not prepared to become unemployed in a society where older people have difficulty finding employment. After facing a police blockade on Chamai Maruchet Bridges, the workers wait throughout the afternoon. At around 17.40, 10 representatives met with government representatives for a negotiation. At around 20.10, the rest of the workers attempted to break through the blockade, but were blocked by units of crowd control police.
Thanaporn Wichan, an activist from the Labour Network for People’s Rights, said that the workers tried to get pass the police because the negotiation was taking a long time and they were concerned about the safety of their representatives. She noted that the negotiation ended at around 18.00, but they had to wait an hour for a record of the discussion to be issued.
According to the document, the Office of the Permanent Secretary will be following up with agencies responsible for prosecuting the three companies. Somkid Chuakong, the Prime Minister's deputy secretary-general, will also be working with relevant ministries to place an urgent request to the Cabinet to allocate budget to cover the workers' severance.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Indian authorities must drop the charges against journalist Ashutosh Negi, who was arrested in connection with his reporting on a murder investigation in the northern state of Uttarakhand, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
Negi, editor of the weekly Hindi newspaper Jago Uttarakhand, was arrested on March 5 from his home in Pauri town, 94 miles (151 kilometers) from the state capital of Dehradun, according to multiple news outlets and his lawyer, Navnish Negi (no relation), who spoke to CPJ by phone.
Although Negi was released on bail on Wednesday, he faces accusations under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes law, based on a complaint from an unnamed individual and allegations of a scuffle with police officers during his arrest, those reports added.
Immediately after Negi’s arrest, Uttarakhand Director General of Police, Abhinav Kumar, issued a statement accusing the journalist of being “part of a conspiracy” to “sow anarchy and discord in society” through his reporting and activism around the police investigation into the killing of 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari in September 2022, news reports said.
Bhandari, a receptionist at a resort owned by the son of a former ruling Bharatiya Janata Party official, went missing and was later found dead. Despite initial arrests in connection with the case, including that of the official’s son, concerns persist over the pace and transparency of the investigation. Negi has extensively reported and shared his views on the police investigation on his news website and social media platforms, according to CPJ’s review.
“The police chief’s statement makes it abundantly clear that journalist Ashutosh Negi is being targeted for his work as a journalist and activist,” said Kunāl Majumder, CPJ’s India representative. “Authorities in Uttarakhand must drop all charges against him and ensure that the media can perform their duties without fear or interference.”
Navnish Negi accused the police of misusing the law to target his client and told CPJ that the accusation against Negi for violating Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes law was found to be false during a governmental inquiry 1½ years ago. A fresh allegation was filed against Negi in January to harass him, Navnish Negi claimed.
Kumar did not respond to CPJ’s email requesting comments.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Ainara Aidarkhanova, the lawyer of imprisoned Kazakh activist Aigerim Tileuzhanova, told RFE/RL that her client was additionally charged with "inflicting bodily damage" over a brawl with another inmate. The lawyer added that the fight was most likely provoked to frame her client. Tileuzhanova, a noted civil rights activist, was sentenced to four years in prison, while her four co-defendants, all men, received eight years in prison each, after a court found them guilty in July of "organizing mass unrest at Almaty airport" during unprecedented anti-government protests in January 2022 that turned deadly. All pleaded not guilty.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Kazakhstan: five detained defenders appeal denied
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Sri Lankan authorities must immediately drop their investigations into journalists G.P. Nissanka and Bimal Ruhunage and allow them to report without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday.
On the evening of March 5, officers with the Sri Lanka police service’s Criminal Investigation Department arrested G.P. Nissanka, owner and editor of the news site Ravana Lanka News, from his home in the Pallebedda area of the southern Sabaragamuwa Province, according to news reports and the Media Organizations Collective, a group of Sri Lankan organizations advocating for press freedom and freedom of expression.
Amila Egodamahawatta, Nissanka’s lawyer, told CPJ that the journalist was held in police remand until he was released on bail March 20. His mobile phone, seized during his arrest, remains in police custody as of Friday, Egodamahawatta said.
Nissanka’s arrest followed a complaint by Vikum Liyanage, commander of the Sri Lankan army, after Ravana Lanka News published an article accusing the commander of corruption and malfeasance.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict in the bail pleas of Gulfisha Fatima and Shifa-ur-Rehman, president of the Alumni Association of Jamia Millia Islamia University (AAJMI), booked in the police’s “larger conspiracy case” pertaining to the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots.
A division bench of Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Manoj Jain reserved the matters after hearing the arguments by all the parties on both merits as well as the applicants’ pleas seeking parity with the bail granted to three other co-accused in the case — Asif Iqbal Tanha, Natasha Narwal, and Devangana Kalita. The three were granted bail by the Delhi High Court in 2021.
In the last hearing, the bench had asked the Delhi Police’s counsel to take instructions and state whether the investigation would continue or would be closed. On Tuesday, the counsel said the status of the probe could be explained by the investigation officer (IO).
“Ten days may be given so that the Investigating Officer is here and he can exactly explain the status of the investigation,” the counsel said. Stating that certain results from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) were awaited, the counsel said, “Supplementary charge sheets will come, because the moment FSL results come, those have to be placed by way of supplementary charge sheets before the trial court. There is no other way”.
On the filing of the fourth supplementary chargesheet in June 2023, the counsel said certain applicants had moved pleas under Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) seeking certain data, and the “stand of state was rather than giving it to one and not giving it to another, we would rather make it part of the supplementary chargesheet and file it before the court”.
On the issue of parity with the co-accused on bail, Senior Advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for Rehman, said the police had not said a word on parity in the High Court “there are much more serious questions as far as Rehman’s character is concerned”.
The police’s counsel argued that parity also has to be seen in relation to the denial of bail to Umar Khalid, stating that the High Court had in its October 2022 judgment had taken a view that there was a conspiracy.
Khurshid submitted, “None of the witnesses have said that this was a conspiracy to bring the country into disrepute”.
“Violent protest is unacceptable. But to say that any form of protest, chakka jam, or sit-in amounts to conspiracy for a terrorist act would be destroying the very basis of the jurisprudence of liberty in the country. Liberty must prevail,” said Khurshid.
Meanwhile, appearing for Fatima Advocate Sushil Bajaj submitted his client is entitled to claim parity as no court has concluded that the bail granted to Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita in 2021 was wrongly granted.
Gulfisha Fatima and Shifa-ur-Rehman, along with several others, were booked under provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly being the “masterminds” of the 2020 Delhi riots.
As violence erupted during the protests in Delhi against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 53 people were killed and over 700 injured in the riots.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Student, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Violence against farmers in Pakel Village, Licin Subdistrict, Banyuwangi Regency has surfaced again. This time, farmers who are members of Rukun Tani Sumberejo Pakel (RTSP) again had to deal with the brutal actions of hundreds of armed mobs from PT Bumisari Maju Sukses (BMS).
Based on the chronology release from Pakel farmers that we received, the endless series of attacks from PT Bumisari Maju Sukses (BMS) on farmers' cultivated land began on March 5, 2024. On that day, the farmers initially found that the hut on their cultivated land had collapsed and was damaged. In fact, a bottle containing gasoline was also found, which was suspected to be used to burn the hut that had been torn down.
Four days later, on Saturday, March 9, 2024 at around 09:51 a.m., dozens of PT BMS security guards accompanied by a group of people suspected of being hired thugs broke into the reclaiming land owned by farmers in the Pongkor area. They then deliberately knocked down and burned down simple huts built by farmers on the cultivated land. In a release, Pakel farmers revealed that although they came to the location shortly after the incident, the security and a group of people suspected of being hired thugs chose to retreat.
However, the vandalism did not stop there. At around 11:00 a.m. on the same day, the farmers were surprised by the presence of a new hut erected by PT BMS in the middle of the road to the land in the Pongkor area. The presence of this hut blocked the access of farmers to pass on the road. While standing guard at the location, the farmers reportedly witnessed PT BMS cutting down crops and destroying a hut owned by a farmer in the Panasean area not far from Pongkor.
"Therefore, we spontaneously tried to chase and chase them away so that they would not return to cut down our plants. Since then, we have to be on guard so that no more of our plants are cut down," reads a quote in the chronology release.
Furthermore, it was revealed that the access road at the Taman Glugo River bridge that farmers usually pass through to reach the cultivated land was also blocked using a truck that was strongly suspected to belong to PT BMS.
On Sunday, March 10, 2024 at around 10:30 a.m., the riot heated up again on Pakel farmers' cultivated land. This time, the mob from PT BMS, estimated at 150 people, cut down the plants and damaged the farmer's hut in the northern area of Kali Gondang.
Knowing this, other Pakel farmers came to the location. However, the mob mobilized by PT BMS acted even more barbaric by intimidating the farmers, pushing them, and threatening them with sharp weapons. There were even some people suspected of being hired thugs who challenged Pakel farmers to a duel.
"At 11:00 a.m., we started to arrive. At first there were only a few of us. After more farmers arrived, PT Bumisari retreated," reads a quote in the chronology release issued by Rukun Tani Sumberejo Pakel.
Furthermore, in the evening at around 19.30 WIB, one of the Pakel farmers who was conducting routine night patrols suffered physical abuse in the form of a blow to the nape of the neck and had to be rushed to the puskesmas. At that time the victim was patrolling with 6 other farmers. When he saw a shadow, the victim approached but was then attacked by a masked man with a sharp weapon and another man who beat him from behind until he fainted. Before being helped by his colleagues, the three perpetrators had already run away.
On Thursday, March 14 at around 08:37 a.m., the situation heated up again, PT BMS mobilized around 300 people to massively attack Pakel farmers' land again. They deliberately cleared and damaged 2 hectares of farmers' crops in Kali Gondang and Pongkor. More than 3 farmers' huts were also vandalized and burned down on that day.
Although Pakel farmers tried to resist, PT BMS again acted more barbaric by carrying sharp weapons and firearms. There were even two shots fired into the air allegedly to scare the farmers into retreating. As a result, a female farmer was victimized with bruises on her hands, arms and legs.
After attacking Kali Gondang, at around 11:09 a.m., PT BMS also attacked the Pongkor area, allegedly to break the farmers' concentration so that they could more freely damage the plants. In the release, it was mentioned that around 20 banana trees belonging to farmers were cleared by PT BMS. In this incident, some PT BMS workers chose to go home and apologize to Pakel farmers while claiming to have been fooled and paid by the company to attack Pakel farmers.
The escalation of violence experienced by Pakel farmers did not stop there. On Thursday, March 21, 2024 at 08.55 WIB, according to the chronology release sent by Pakel farmers to us, PT Bumisari security began to re-trigger acts of provocation and intimidation of tension by instructing its heavily armed troops to advance and spread to the right and left of the farmers' cultivated land area.
Initially, the farmers were not provoked and remained vigilant in guarding the border to prevent PT Bumisari's troops from breaking in and damaging their crops again. However, soon PT BMS security gave another command by directing its troops to cut down trees on Pakel farmers' cultivated land.
Seeing the situation escalating, Pakel farmers stepped in to prevent further destruction. They blocked PT Bumisari's armed troops who were about to cut down trees in front of their own eyes. This incident triggered a physical clash with mutual pushing and shoving between the two camps.
Quoted from the chronology release, PT Bumisari did not want to back down and still insisted on trying to cut down the farmers' crops even though they had been blocked. As a result, the clash was inevitable.
Not only physical clashes, threats and intimidation were also sent by PT Bumisari to farmers who still insisted on defending their cultivated land. The release stated that some farmers were even threatened with imprisonment if they persisted in blocking land destruction. Even more worrying, PT Bumisari also explicitly threatened to return to destroying farmers' crops if residents' representatives refused to come to court. Of course, such intimidation triggered deep trauma and concern among Pakel farmers who only wanted to defend their cultivated land.
Even so, their determination to defend their cultivated land has not waned. In the release, it was mentioned that after the clash and the attack from PT Bumisari finally subsided at around 09.30 WIB, the farmers actually returned to guard until night to anticipate other unexpected attacks.
"After the clash, we remained on guard until night around our land to ensure that PT Bumisari's troops did not attack or damage our crops again," said Harun, who also faced the incident.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Agricultural business
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Mar 5, 2024
- Event Description
Dwi Kurniawati (41), a female worker in Surabaya, East Java was thrown into prison after asking about the district/city minimum wage (UMK) at her place of work.
This was revealed when the Public Prosecutor from the Surabaya District Prosecutor's Office, Darwis read out the indictment against Dwi Kurniawati, in the Candra room of the Surabaya District Court, Thursday (21/3/2024).
The indictment states that the worker from Sumber Wulut, Surabaya falsified work experience letters so he could work as accounting staff at PT Mentari Nawa Satria or what is known as the Kowloon Palace International Club.
Dwi Kurniawati has been detained at the Medaeng Detention Center since March 5 2024. Dwi's case is in the spotlight and this 41 year old mother received assistance from the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) Advocacy Team for State Child Care Workers (Tabur Pari).
In LBH's view, Dwi is a victim who does not receive employment rights. Then the company again made Dwi a victim by reporting him to the Genteng Surabaya Police.
Achmad Roni, one of the lawyers from LBH, explained that initially Dwi worked as an accountant at PT Mentari Nawa Satria or better known as Kowloo Discotheque.
Dwi was initially contracted to work for 6 months, and served for 3 months. The first month Dwi received a salary of IDR 1.2 million, the second month IDR 1.5 million, and the third month IDR 2.3 million.
"In addition to her salary being below the UMK, Ms. Dwi was also not registered with BPJS and her birth certificate was withheld. Starting from there, she complained to the Surabaya City Manpower Office and was directed to direct the criminal rights dispute case to the East Java Provincial Manpower Office. So, because there was no follow-up, Dwi reported it to East Java Regional Police," he said.
The police apparently stopped the case. However, suddenly Dwi was reported to the Genteng Police.
"The person who reported the employee was named Eko Purnomo. He was not a shareholder and reported the name of the company representative. Strangely enough, before the suspect was summoned, the statement of representing the company was omitted. The report was in Eko's personal name," said Roni.
Roni and his friends think that this case cannot be separated, because Dwi Kurniawati is fighting for the right to receive wages according to the UMK.
"In short, there was criminalization, Mrs. Dwi went to jail after asking about UMK," he explained.
Tribunjatim has attempted to confirm PT Mentari Nawa Satria by contacting the contact number listed on the Kowloon Instagram account.
Initially the telephone was answered, however, when asked about the case there was no response.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Labour rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Mar 4, 2024
- Event Description
Mondulkiri provincial court on Monday questioned NGO rights group Adhoc official and four Bunong natives after land brokers and fellow villagers filed a defamation and incitement complaint against them. The complaint was made after the suspects submitted evidence of chopped trees and encroachment by the plaintiffs, made up of land brokers and a few villagers.
According to the February 3, 2024 court summons, deputy prosecutor Seav Ngy Chhorn ordered the five people, Bi Vanny, Adhoc provincial coordinator, and minority indigenous people Chen Vanna, Sreng San, Rouen Heng, and Ngin Channa, to present themselves at the Mondulkiri provincial court from March 1 to 4, 2024.
The plaintiffs, who made the complaint, consist of Ploeun Pyin, Nhev Mao, and Soeun Sam, where one or two are known to the villagers as they are from the same village.
Vanny, who was in court on Monday, said the prosecutor asked him questions relating to the information and evidence he submitted about the alleged forest crime and land encroachment at the indigenous people’s land in Poulong village of Sen Monorom city’s Romnea commune.
He said community residents had requested his organization’s help to submit the evidence in court to seek justice as they lacked knowledge of the law.
The evidence was submitted in March 2023, following which the court asked him to appear in November that year. At the time, he said, he told the court that he was only doing what the villagers had requested of him.
On November 20, 2023, a week after Vanny appeared in court, the plaintiffs sued him for defamation and incitement to discrimination, which he denied being involved.
Vanny asked the court to drop all charges against him because he was only providing information to the prosecutor and had no intention of violating the plaintiffs’ rights or harming them.
“We ask the prosecutor to investigate the facts of the case. I hope that the court is an independent institution, a place where justice is upheld, to decide if there was an encroachment, and if it’s related to the three individuals who filed the complaint against me and the four indigenous people,” Vanny said.
He urged the court to quickly investigate and fairly decide on the case. “We are going to court because we all want justice,” he said.
Relating his experience, Chen Vanna, who was questioned on Monday, said the prosecutor questioned him about the land encroachment evidence, which was submitted to court. He said the evidence was submitted because they want to prevent deforestation.
“I answered that I want to intervene to protect our natural resources [forest],” he said.
The prosecutor questioned whether the community land had indeed been encroached, to which Vanna replied, “They [plaintiffs] cut it and if the court doesn’t believe, they can go and see it for themselves.”
“I am not the only one, the people of Poulong village have put in a [petition] everywhere to prevent the community land from being cut down and taken over by the [plaintiffs] as their own land. We want it retained as state property, a common property where we have a forest. But when I tried to stop this, they said I defamed them,” Vanna said.
According to him, the plaintiffs are also residents of Poulong village and the purpose of clearing the community land was because it would be included as indigenous people’s land before claiming that it was “an old plantation”.
“I ask people who are competent to help us preserve the forest and natural resources. The area is a public forest, it’s not owned by anyone. I do not want that land [for me], I just want us all to use it together,” he added.
Similarly, another suspect, Bunong native Ngin Channa, felt that the accusation was unfair because the land dispute happened in the community in Poulong village.
She told the court she was not involved in any incitement, but all the people in the Poulong village need to leave the community land so that it can survive.
“Because we, the Bunong people, go in there to collect resin and vegetables. There are also a lot of cattle there,” Channa said. If 500 to 1,000 hectares of the forest are cut down, there will be no forest, she shared. The trees are like fruits to the community, for instance, resin, which is available during dry and rainy seasons.
When the prosecutor asked who confiscated the land brokers’ machine used to cut the trees, she admitted that the community did. The machine was sent to the community representative and the commune forestry administration.
She said the community people volunteered to protect the land from being lost.
“I would like to request the court in Mondulkiri to find the perpetrators, as in who is behind those who dare to do this [clear the land]. There are efforts to prevent [encroachment] [via continuous patrolling], but how can they [land brokers] still do that?” Channa asked.
She requested the government and the relevant authorities to look into the issue, adding that the evidence has been submitted to the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
“Please intervene in this matter so that there is no further encroachment and please drop the charges so that no one is summoned again. Every day we have nothing. We are farmers, so it [the case] disrupts our activity and we cannot do any other work. I’m stuck with a bank loan,” Channa said.
According to Channa, she is now looking for additional evidence to submit to the court, asserting that encroachment is still ongoing.
Mondulkiri provincial deputy governor Cheak Mengheang told CamboJA on Wednesday afternoon that there was daily encroachment, but that it cannot be proven currently. He asked that the information be checked first because it was unclear.
Romnea commune chief Phy Ngouk could not be reached for comment.
NGO rights group Licadho operation director Am Sam Ath believed that citizens who understand and dare to file evidence relating to the protection of collective property, community or state property should be encouraged. They should not be prosecuted for any crime.
But if they are prosecuted, it breaks the spirit of the people who participate in the protection of the environment.
“It is akin to a restriction on the rights of civil society who work to protect the common interests of the forest, natural resources, and the environment,” Sam Ath said. “If this problem persists, no one will dare report problems at the local or community level,” he said.
He also called on the court officials to drop charges against Adhoc’s Vanny and the four local residents who are devoted to protecting the forests.
“I understand that when there is a complaint, the court must summon the people for questioning, but hopefully it will look at all the issues, and the rights and freedom of people,” Sam Ath said.
Deputy prosecutor Seav Ngy Chhorn told CamboJA that the court has yet to decide what is the next procedure after it finished questioning relevant parties involved in the case. The court needs to further question witnesses as both parties have submitted additional evidence.
Early this February, the ruling CPP also filed a lawsuit against outspoken human rights group Adhoc Soeng Senkaruna for allegedly making a comment believed to provoke unrest and incite hatred against them. The comment was also allegedly intended to affect the Senate election on February 25, 2024, according to the complaint published by Fresh News.
In the complaint, CPP asked the court to consider their request to indict and sentence Soeng Senkaruna in accordance with the law. A compensation of two billion riel (approximately $500,000) has also been demanded from him.
Political analyst Em Sovannara opined that in Cambodia today, the “justice system is only available for the influential and the wealthy”. He alleged that “ordinary people, advocates, and those who do social work seem to face the most problems”, which he sees as an unfavorable task for the democratic environment in Cambodia.
“In general, if we look at the characteristics of civil society organizations, advocates, activists and political parties, they seem to be shrinking. There is no space for political freedom and freedom of expression. The Cambodian society lacks a system of justice that gives us confidence,” he said.
In this aspect, he would like to see a return to the principles of democracy prescribed under the Constitution and by the United Nations Charter and Paris Peace Agreements. They clearly state the principles of multi-party liberal democracy where Cambodians can seek justice.
He added that if there is only a theoretical system of the policy, but without practical application, Cambodians would be affected by the injustice in a country that practices democracy.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Access to justice, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Land rights defender, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Mar 4, 2024
- Event Description
Below is a letter from Tran Phuong Thao, wife of imprisoned climate leader Dang Dinh Bach. In it, she alleges Prison No. 6 in Nghe An province deliberately withheld a package of food from Bach, leaving him to have essentially no access to food for two weeks. This serious allegation should be thoroughly investigated by the international community.
Bach, who is serving five years in prison on spurious charges of tax evasion, has been subjected to harsh prison conditions and has undertaken numerous hunger strikes in protest. His family has also faced constant harassment from the Vietnamese authorities, even threatening the confiscation of their home.
Hanoi, 13.03.2024 ~
Dear friends, colleagues and international organizations
I came home yesterday (March 12) at 9PM after visiting my husband Đặng Đình Bách in Prison No. 6, Nghe An province. I left home (in Hanoi) at 9PM the day before (March 11), which means twenty three hours on the road to see and talk to Bách through a glass pane for one hour, and to bring him the 5kg of dried vegetarian food allowed by the Vietnamese authorities, vital for his survival.
This letter is going to be short, because there is no amelioration to Bách’s detention situation to report. It has gotten even worse, so bad that I have been feeling suffocated from anxiety for Bách’s health and safety, as the prison seemed to increase their policy of deprivation of food by not handing over the 6kg of food I sent Bách per post on Feb 28.
This food parcel was the only nutrition source Bách would get for the last 2 weeks, as he depends entirely on his family’s supplies to eat vegetarian and safe food. In his last phone call on Feb. 2, Bach had already informed me that he was running out of food.
VN Post recorded that parcel 475790 (sent by me on Feb 28) was delivered on March 4 at 9:25:33 to a prison warden named San. But the parcel never reached Bách, and my husband was left without food for the last 2 weeks.
“Every two or three days, the canteen sold me something,” Bách said, “and my teeth are getting loose.”
Bách would like to thank —
–Ms. Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Mr. Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.; Mr. David Boyd, Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment; Mr. Marcos A. Orellana, Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes; Ms. Priya Gopalan (Chair-Rapporteur), Mr. Matthew Gillett (Vice-Chair on Communications), Ms. Ganna Yudkivska (Vice-Chair on Follow-Up), Ms. Miriam Estrada-Castillo, and Mr. Mumba Malila – Working Group on arbitrary detention,
for urging the Government of Viet Nam to stop targeting, convicting, and mistreating him
–Chairman Cardin for mentioning him and calling for his release in the Truth to Power series of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee SFRC.
As last week Vietnam and Vanuatu sought advice from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on national climate change obligations, Bách puts his trust in the wisdom and farsightedness of his friends and colleagues to monitor Vietnam’s national commitment on climate change issue.
Bách would like to wish you all endurance, peace of mind, and harmony.
Yours faithfully,
Tran Phuong Thao (Mrs)
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to food, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Lawyer, NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 3, 2024
- Event Description
Authorities have transferred a Tibetan Buddhist monastery administrator and a village official – both arrested last month on suspicion of leading protests against the construction of a dam – to a large detention center in southwestern China’s Sichuan province, two sources with knowledge of the situation told Radio Free Asia.
Tenzin, the senior administrator of Wonto Monastery in Wangbuding township, and a village official named Tamdrin, were transferred from where they were previously detained to the larger Dege County Detention Center Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture on March 3, said the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals by Chinese officials.
The men, who both go by just one name, were among the more than 1,000 Tibetan monks and residents of Dege County who were arrested on Feb. 23 for peacefully appealing to halt the construction of the dam on the Drichu River (Jinsha, in Chinese).
Some of these detainees, including Tenzin and Tamdrin, were severely beaten.
The dam construction is expected to cause the forced resettlement of at least two major villages, Wonto and Shipa, and the destruction of several monasteries with religious and historical significance, including the Wonto and Yena monasteries.
On Feb. 27, Chinese police released around 40 Tibetans, even as they forbade them from communicating with outsiders and imposed strict restrictions on the movement of people to and from the various monasteries and villages on both sides of the river.
Checking social media feeds
Sources, however, told RFA on Thursday that Chinese authorities are continuing to arrest more people and have cracked down on the people who posted videos of the arrests and protests that took place in February.
“The police are regularly checking people’s WeChat and TikTok accounts for any evidence of them having shared the videos and for communication with the outside world,” the first source said. “There’s severe restrictions on movement on either side of the river and no internet connection.”
The authorities are carrying out widespread, daily search and interrogations to find the people who posted the videos of black-clad Chinese police restraining the monks, who could be seen kneeling and crying out.
“People who send information out and videos like this face imprisonment and torture,” Maya Wang, interim China director of Human Rights Watch told RFA last month in the wake of the first round of arrests of more than 100 Tibetans that took place on Feb. 22. “Even calling families in the diaspora are reasons for imprisonment.”
“What we do see now are actually … typical scenes of repression in Tibet, but we don’t often get to see [what] repression looks like in Tibet anymore,” Wang said.
‘Open prison’ in Dege
The police are monitoring the monks and locals very closely, and the situation is like an “open prison as they are exercising extreme control,” said the second source.
“The monks and local people are very angry that they were arrested and subjected to beatings and torture for making peaceful appeals,” he added. “They say that if the government really forces them to move, there may be violent protests.”
Chinese officials have, however, made clear that the Gangtuo Dam project will continue, two Tibetans with knowledge of the situation told RFA earlier this month.
The Gangtuo Dam is part of a plan that China’s National Development and Reform Commission announced in 2012 to build a massive 13-tier hydropower complex on the Drichu. It would be located at Wontok (Gangtuo, in Chinese) in Dege county, northwest of Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The total planned capacity of the 13 hydropower stations is 13,920 megawatts.
Over the past two weeks, Tibetans in exile have been holding solidarity rallies in cities in the United States, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Australia and India.
Global leaders and Tibetan advocacy groups have condemned China’s actions, calling for the immediate release of those detained.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Land rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Mar 2, 2024
- Event Description
Calls are growing for authorities in Hong Kong to release Lai Ke, a transgender activist from China who now faces repatriation after being jailed while transiting the city en route to Canada, her supporters and a rights group said in online statements.
Lai, who is also known as Xiran, was hauled in for questioning while transiting Hong Kong International Airport en route from Shanghai to Toronto in May 2023, and later handed a 15-month jail term for "forging" her travel documents at a secret trial with no lawyer present, according to her supporters.
As is Hong Kong's policy for trans inmates, she served her sentence at the Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre, a psychiatric detention center, and was released early for good behavior on March 2.
But instead of being released, Lai was immediately transferred to the Castle Peak Bay Immigration Detention Centre, sparking fears among her supporters and rights groups that she will be sent back to China, according to the X account @FreeLaiKe.
If she is forcibly repatriated, Lai will be "at grave risk of persecution," Amnesty International has warned.
"The Hong Kong authorities must urgently clarify Lai Ke’s pending immigration status," Amnesty International's China Director Sarah Brooks said in a statement dated March 1. "As she is due to be released after serving her sentence, authorities must free her without conditions and allow her to travel onwards to a destination feasible for her."
"In any event, the authorities must allow Lai Ke to legally challenge any deportation order following her release after serving her sentence," Brooks said.
Mistreated in detention
Lai’s supporters say that she had been a vocal advocate for trans rights back in China alongside her partner Cai Xia, who was detained by the Chinese authorities in June 2023 in connection with her activism and her transgender identity, and accused of "organizing obscene activities."
The Lai Ke (Xiran) Global Concern Group, which has been actively posting about her situation on Twitter and Instagram, said Lai had also been mistreated while in detention in Hong Kong, saying guards deprived her of her hormone medication, put her in solitary for a week calling her an "alien," and forced her to cut her hair short.
The group said Lai had suffered physically and psychologically after being deprived of her hormone replacement therapy for two months, despite having the medication in her luggage.
"Throughout her detention, Lai Ke repeatedly requested access to hormone medication, only to have these requests denied on various pretexts," it said in a statement dated Feb. 27.
"As a result, Lai Ke was forced to cease hormone replacement therapy medication for nearly two months, leading to severe physical and psychological repercussions, including instances of self-harm," it said.
Her parents weren't informed of her whereabouts until July 19, 2023, and the authorities initially claimed that there was no record of Lai having entered Hong Kong, the group claimed in the statement, which RFA was unable to verify independently.
It accused the Hong Kong authorities of "complicity" in the Chinese government's persecution of trans people.
The group also posted a letter handwritten by Lai in classical Chinese, an archaic form of the written language used by premodern writers, in which she complains about her treatment.
It said earlier attempts by Lai to write about her experiences in the detention center were censored by detention center authorities.
'Time is of the essence'
According to Amnesty International, Lai is vulnerable to repatriation under Hong Kong immigration law, because she isn't a resident of the city.
“Time is of the essence to prevent Lai Ke from being unlawfully deported to mainland China, where she would be at grave risk of serious human rights violations – including arbitrary detention, unfair trial, and even torture and other ill-treatment – due to both her transgender identity and her activism,” Brooks said.
“To return her given these risks would be an abandonment of Hong Kong’s obligations under international law," she said.
Amnesty International said it has documented systematic oppression and discrimination of transgender people in China, as well as large-scale censorship in recent years leading to the closure of online lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex groups and social media accounts.
It said police in China have repeatedly arrested, detained and imprisoned human rights defenders of all kinds using "unjustified, broadly defined and vaguely worded charges."
Hong Kong Catholic priest and rights activist Franco Mella said that trans inmates are typically held in Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre, but that the final decision over whether to continue hormone treatment lies with the center's doctor.
"Any medications need to be discussed with the doctor -- who can approve them but can also not approve them," Mella said. "It's the doctor's decision."
He said it was unclear how long Lai might be held at the Castle Peak detention center.
"Once you go in there, there's no way of knowing when you'll be released," he said.
Crackdowns on LGBTQ+ community
LGBTQ+ activism is all but extinct in China, where the ruling Chinese Communist Party under Xi Jinping has cracked down on anyone displaying the rainbow flag in public, members of China's LGBTQ+ community told Radio Free Asia in interviews in January.
In August 2023, Chinese officials removed an LGBTQ+ anthem titled "Rainbow" by Taiwanese pop star A-Mei from her set list from a concert earlier this month in Beijing, while security guards forced fans turning up for the gig to remove clothing and other paraphernalia bearing the rainbow symbol before going in, according to media reports.
A month after that crackdown, authorities in the central Chinese city of Changsha removed the song "Womxnly" – which commemorates a Taiwanese teenager who was found dead in a school toilet after being bullied by classmates for his "feminine" appearance – from the set list of Taiwanese pop star Jolin Tsai, after it became an anthem for the island's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transexual and questioning community.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- LGBTQ+/ Non-Binary
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- SOGI rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Mar 1, 2024
- Event Description
On the morning of March 1st, 2024, reports surfaced alleging that Abzal Dostiyarov, an activist, was subjected to severe brutality by law enforcement officers. The incident occurred as he was taking his young daughter to kindergarten.
According to his live streams and relatives, Dostiyarov was seized and violently beaten by the police, resulting in head injuries and to his arm.
Following his detainment at the District Police Department, a court delivered a verdict in the evening, without thorough investigation, sentencing him to 20 days of detention in Shonja city. The charges against him stem from his alleged participation in and broadcasting of protests linked to the trial of independent journalist Duman Mukhammedkarim. Additional sources suggest that the arrest may be linked to the four applications submitted on March 3rd to hold a rally in Almaty in support of the accused journalist.
While Dostiyarov was not among those who appealed for a rally, it is likely that the police preventively detain known activists and political opposition. At least 5 more people have been arrested in the last three weeks just because they were suspected of attending the trial of Mukhammedkarim.
This is not a new phenomenon, as the state has been found prosecuting people who stand in solidarity with political prisoners. Previously almost 20 people were prosecuted for attending and publicly supporting Aigerim Tleuzhanova, another activist and journalist charged over her involvement in a plot to seize the country’s main airport during the January 2022 unrest.
Duman Mukhammedkarim is an independent journalist, who previously made a career working for a state-owned news channel. In 2021, he left the public sector and started his own YouTube channel, Ne Deidi (What’s said?). Known for his coverage of the events of Bloody January in 2022, his channel served as platform for political activism and critique of Kazakh authorities and institutions. His coverage on elections, activism, and rally organizing, has resulted in several of his arrests and much time spent in custody. In May 2023 a criminal case had been opened again Mukhammedkarim, during which he was already under administrative detention for allegedly violating regulations on peaceful assembly. By June, has been implicated as a suspect under two sections of the Criminal Code: “Participation in the activities of a banned organization” (Article 405, part 2) and “Financing of extremism” (Article 258, part 1). With the latter accusation risking imprisonment for five to nine years. According to a lawyer, Galum Nurpeisov, both criminal cases are linked to an interview he conducted with Mukhtar Ablyazov, an exiled opposition leader in December 2022. Ablyazov is the head of the opposition movement, Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan, which has been recognized as an extremist organization by Kazakhstan authorities.
Duman Mukhammedkarim’s trial began on the 12th of February 2024. The judge granted Saken Kenesov’s, (the prosecutor), request to hold the trial behind closed doors, citing the risk of security concerns. Moreover, supporters and journalists were denied entry into the courtroom on the pretext of insufficient space in the courtroom. The closure of the trial results in limited access to information regarding the development of the case.
Closed trials are prevalent occurrences in Kazakhstan particularly when it comes to political activists and members of opposition. This was quite common with key cases related to the Bloody January events, with individuals such as Marat Zhylanbayev, a government critic and leader of unregistered party ‘Alga Kazakhstan.’ His trial was closed to the public and on November 30th was sentenced to seven years in prison on unfounded charges. Closed-court proceedings are frequent for government officials accused of malpractice, including torture and other human rights violations. For example, 11 officials charged for their involvement in the Bloody January protests have had their cases closed to the public, with many ending prematurely due to “insufficient evidence.”
Almost a year in detention, Mukhammedkarim criticised the conditions in the temporary detention centre, addressing issues regarding food, sanitation, and treatment of other detainees. Moreover, on the 1st of November, he described his multiple hunger strikes, self-harm incidents, and a suicide attempt made to attract the attention of authorities to the horrible conditions of his detention, but to no avail. The international response comprises of Human Rights Watch (HRW) statement, on the 8th of February, urging authorities to dismiss the baseless case against Mukhammedkarim and called for his immediate release. This comes amidst a surge in prosecutions against critics on similar grounds. HRW reveal that Mukhammedkarim is the second government critic to go on trial on broad extremism charges in recent months.
Both Mukhammedkarim and Dostiyarov are victims of the repressive tactics employed by Kazkakh authorities to silence and suppress activist dissent, while the attackers and officials guilty of torture have yet to be brought to justice.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment, Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Mar 1, 2024
- Event Description
Three activists have been charged with royal defamation and sedition for reading a statement and giving a speech during a protest in November 2021 after a complaint was filed against them by an ultra-royalist group leader.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said that Chatchai Kaedam, Chatrapee Artsomboon, and Nawat Liangwattana reported to the police at Thungmahamek Police Station last Friday (1 March). The inquiry officer informed them that the charges resulted from a protest on 14 November 2021, when protesters marched to the German Embassy in Bangkok. The speeches of Chatchai and Chatrapee, as well as the group’s statement which Nawat read out, were deemed seditious and an offense under the royal defamation law.
The complaint against them was filed by Anon Klinkaew, leader of the ultra-royalist group People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy, who has filed several royal defamation complaints against activists and netizens and has been involved in attacks on pro-democracy activists and citizen journalists.
The 14 November 2021 protest came after the Constitutional Court’s ruling that calls for monarchy reform constitute an attempt to overthrow the “democratic regime of government with the King as Head of State.” Activists initially planned to march from the Democracy Monument to Sanam Luang but were forced to relocate after facing a police blockade. Instead, they marched from the Pathumwan Intersection to the German Embassy, during which three people were shot in front of the Institute of Forensic Medicine.
At the German Embassy, three activists met with Embassy representatives and submitted their open letter. Nawat then read out a statement saying that the increased power of the monarchy is moving Thailand away from a democratic regime and towards an absolute monarchy, while royalists are trying to rewrite history so that the monarch has the power to rule the country and the people are reduced to mere inhabitants.
The statement said that it is therefore unavoidable that the monarchy’s expansion of power must be stopped to bring about democracy. It also insisted that they are not calling for an abolition of the regime but are fighting for a regime in which everyone is equal.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Feb 29, 2024
- Event Description
Mohammad Atef Daie, a university professor, has reportedly been sentenced to one year in prison by the Taliban’s military court in Kabul, according to local sources.
Sources confirmed to the Hasht-e Subh Daily on Thursday, February 29th, that the Taliban handed down a “disciplinary imprisonment” to this university professor during this significant month of the year.
The Taliban’s military court imposed a one-year prison term on the professor for allegedly covering the electricity bill of the residence belonging to Zahir Aghbar, Afghanistan’s ambassador to Tajikistan, and for accommodating Mohammad Aatef’s family in Aghbar’s house.
However, other sources suggest that the professor’s imprisonment stems from his activism on social media, where he advocated for girls’ education rights and criticized the Taliban’s actions, particularly regarding women’s rights.
According to these sources, Aatef has been denied legal representation by the Taliban, and his family is permitted only brief “window visits” lasting ten minutes every two weeks at Pol-e-Charkhi prison.
It is noteworthy that the Taliban demanded Mohammad Atef Daie on November 19, 2023, alleging his association with the “02 Intelligence Directorate” of the group before arresting him.
Mohammad Atef Daie previously taught at private universities in Kabul but was recently appointed as an advisor to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of the Taliban, recommended by the Union of Traders and Investors of the country.
He hails from the Piyawesht district in the Rokha district of Panjshir province.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Academic, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 29, 2024
- Event Description
The regional Court of Appeal in Battambang province on Thursday questioned three villagers from around Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, who were accused of incitement for allegedly posting an Apsara National Authority notice on social media.
Last year, Apsara authority filed a complaint against three residents Luy Socheat, Phan Salin and Sok Pov for incitement for allegedly posting the notice on the removal of illegal structures in Ampil commune’s Bakorng village last year. The three also urged other villagers to join a protest.
Some 100 villagers traveled by bus to the regional Appeal Court to protest on Thursday, calling court officials to drop all charges against three residents in Bakorng district.
The case against the three is an appeal by Apsara authority after a decision to hold their case by Siem Reap provincial deputy prosecutor Lay Nisay on November 30, according to the court warrant obtained by CamboJA. But, the court did not reveal a specific reason.
Sok Pov told CamboJA that prosecutor Kong Chamkhemrin questioned him regarding the information posted on Facebook in relation to Apsara authory’s notice to remove illegal structures of villagers.
“The court allowed us to return home after questioning, and he [Kong Chankhemrin] said [we] don’t need to be worried about an arrest,” he said. “I didn’t commit what they [Apsara authority] accused me of because I shared the information.”
Battambang Court of Appeal spokesperson Teang Sambo confirmed that three villages were questioned for incitement at the court but declined to comment further. She asked that questions be referred to the spokesperson for prosecutor Ream Chanmony. However, the spokesperson declined to comment.
Chea Kosal, one of villagers who came to support the three, said the accusation by Apsara authority is “unreasonable” as they had only shared information, which is not the same as incitement.
“The accusation is unfair because sharing information isn’t an offense. We are angry, which is why we have come here to support them,” Kosal said.
He called on the Battambang Court of Appeal to uphold the provincial court decision, which had correctly decided to hold the case.
Local NGO Licadho rights supervisor In Kongchet expressed disappointment that Apsara authority took the case to a higher level after the provincial court’s decision.
“They are not guilty of posting the notification letters of Apsara National Authority. It is like sharing information to their community, so it’s not an offense [or] did not commit a felony,” he said.
“[If] Apsara authority continues to sue them, it will cause them to live in fear due to the court process,” Konchet said. “It also affects their livelihood as they have to travel to court.”
He urged Apsara authority to stop suing the villagers and consider settling the issue.
Apsara National Authority deputy director-general Long Kosal could not be reached for comment.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: villagers targeted with criminal charges
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 29, 2024
- Event Description
Independent journalist and former political prisoner Nguyen Vu Binh has been arrested again. On the morning of Feb. 29, the 56-year-old Binh was summoned to the police headquarters in Hanoi to discuss the YouTube channel TNT Media Live, which he and lawyer Nguyen Van Dai (currently in exile) worked on together from 2021 to 2022. After the meeting with the police, Binh was taken back to his apartment where the police formally arrested him and searched his residence. Nguyen Thi Phong, his sister, who witnessed the arrest, told Project88 that when she went to the police station on March 4 to retrieve Binh’s motorbike, she was told verbally that he had been charged with conducting “anti-state propaganda” under Article 117. She said she was not shown anything in writing. The police said Binh will be held at Detention Center No.1 in Hanoi for four months while they investigate his case.
Four months is the maximum amount of time by law that authorities can detain a suspect; however, they can file for multiple extensions which can stretch the detention period to years, as has happened to many political prisoners in the past. Phong said that her brother had been “invited” to visit the police many times in the past year. She added that it was thus reasonable to assume that the police have been following his activities for some time now, and that the need to “investigate” Binh was just a legal fig leaf in order to detain him for as long as the law allows. Binh is no stranger to the Ministry of Public Security. He worked for The Communist Magazine for 10 years before joining RFA in the early 2000s. He was convicted in September 2002 and sentenced to seven years in prison for “espionage” – that is, for exposing the party’s dirty secrets. Under international pressure, Binh was released early in 2007. He was awarded the Hellman-Hammett Prize by Human Rights Watch in 2002 and again in 2007 for his courageous activism.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 29, 2024
- Event Description
The Hanoi Police Department on Feb. 29 detained and searched the house of activist and blogger Nguyen Chi Tuyen to investigate his alleged engagement in “distributing anti-state propaganda,” a violation of Article 117 of the Penal Code.
Nguyen Thi Anh Tuyet, Tuyen’s wife, confirmed her husband's detention on the same day, adding that he would be held at Hanoi Detention Center No. 2 for four months during the investigation period. The police also confiscated his cell phone, a laptop, and some of his handwritten notes.
Tuyet said that the previous afternoon, her husband received a summons from the Hanoi Police Department to come in for questioning, but he declined to go because he felt unwell. Last January, the police sent Tuyen a notice informing him that he was prohibited from traveling outside Vietnam.
Tuyen, who is also known by his blog name “Anh Chi,” is a renowned environmental activist, blogger, and human rights defender who often participated in demonstrations against China’s excursions in Vietnam’s maritime territories. He also established two YouTube channels, Anh Chí Râu Đen and AC Media, that discuss social issues in Vietnam and report on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Because of his activism, Tuyen became a target of harassment and surveillance by Vietnamese security. In 2015, he was hospitalized after being beaten by strangers, possibly plainclothes police.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 28, 2024
- Event Description
Reporter at Radio Dhadkan FM 91.8 Shiv Kumar Mahato was issued a threat for his reporting on February 28 in Sarlahi.
Reporter Mahato shared with Freedom Forum that he had published a news story- Madhes Province's Health Minister Birendra SIngh's brother Surendra Singh was found guilty in a corruption case on February 27- on the web portal of radio https://dhadkanfm.com/.
"Following its publication, a person unanimously called me and threatened to break my legs if I write such news again. He also spoke belittling me on the call. Few minutes later, Nikesh Tripathi, personal secretary to the minister Singh asked me to delete the news from the portal through Facebook messenger", he added.
Mahato said that he was in contact with Tripathi before so he recognized Tripathi's voice on the phone call. Even the message on messenger further confirmed it.
He also informed FF that he had filed an application requesting security at the local administration office on February 29.
Freedom Forum condemns the threat issued to reporter for doing his job. Threatening a reporter instead of approaching the regulatory body Press Council Nepal for any dissatisfaction over published news is deplorable.
FF strongly urges the administration and security body to address the issue fairly so as to ensure safety to the journalist.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 28, 2024
- Event Description
Chief editor at https://pranmancha.com/ Padam Prasad Pokharel was brutally attacked while reporting in Kathmandu on February 28.
According to journalist Pokharel, he was reporting on clash among street vendors and metropolitan police persons in Sundhara, Kathmandu. He was taking video of the police baton charging the vendors to remove them from street.
Suddenly, a dozen of police persons started attacking Pokharel with their batons. Journalist Pokharel showed his identity card and asked not to attack him but they ignored him and threw his mobile, laptop and camera. They also kicked him.
"One of my friends took me to a nearby National Trauma Hospital for treatment. There were several bruises all over my body and my leg's ligament was torn. I was discharged from the hospital after treatment the other day", Pokharel informed.
Lately, Kathmandu Metropolitan City office has been barring street vendors while implementing city laws and regulations.
Freedom Forum condemns the attack upon journalist on duty. It is a sheer violation of press freedom. Hence, FF strongly urges the KMC office to instruct its police persons to respect the journalists' right to free reporting. The police persons must return journalist's reporting gadgets undamaged.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 27, 2024
- Event Description
Hong Kong activists on Tuesday staged a rare public protest against government plans for a new national security law, saying it lacked democratic oversight and human rights safeguards.
Public demonstrations have all but vanished in the Chinese finance hub since Beijing quelled huge, sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in 2019 and imposed a sweeping national security law.
Hong Kong officials now say a further homegrown security law is needed to plug “loopholes”, with chief justice Paul Lam earlier saying he heard no objections during a month of public consultations that ends Wednesday.
But activist Yu Wai-pan, from the League of Social Democrats (LSD), told AFP on Tuesday that “many Hongkongers are quite concerned”.
“I don’t understand why the secretary for justice said he heard no objection or worry,” said Yu.
The LSD is one of the last remaining opposition groups in Hong Kong and its members have faced multiple prosecutions for their shows of dissent.
Yu and two other activists were surrounded by press and more than a dozen police officers as they chanted slogans outside the Hong Kong government headquarters Tuesday.
“National security is important to the people, but it must be based on democracy, freedom and rule of law,” said activist Chan Po-ying.
The government referenced examples in the US and Britain in defending the proposed legislation, but Chan said that comparison was misleading, as Hong Kong was not a democracy.
The month-long public consultation for the new security law, known as Basic Law Article 23, was largely limited to pro-Beijing voices, she added.
Xia Baolong, China’s top official overseeing Hong Kong, arrived in the former British colony last week in a tightly choreographed tour to meet with leaders in business and politics.
Xia discussed the security law proposal with two local lawyers’ groups in a closed-door meeting and engaged in “candid exchanges”, the head of the Hong Kong Bar Association earlier told reporters.
Separately on Tuesday, Hong Kong convicted Joseph John — also known as Wong Kin-chung — of “conspiracy to incite secession”, the first such case involving a dual national.
The Portuguese citizen, 41, pleaded guilty to the national security offence, admitting that he was chair of the UK-based Hong Kong Independence Party and an administrator of its six online platforms.
A diplomatic source told AFP that the Portuguese consulate has been unable to visit John since he was arrested and detained in November 2022.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 27, 2024
- Event Description
Samrong Tbong Community members this morning reported injuries stemming from an altercation with authorities over the filling-in of the Boeung Tamok lake area in Phnom Penh. The lake has been parcelled off by the state and given away to politically connected institutions and individuals over the past several years.
Members of Samrong Tbong Community gathered at the area yesterday and this morning to protest the state’s excavation of the community’s land. Community members are facing legal complaints in at least four cases that have been opened since 2022 due to their land activism.
The most recent flare-up of the long-running conflict began yesterday, when three excavators accompanied by around 10 security guards were used to attempt to begin clearing land occupied by the community. Community members gathered and halted the work, after which police officers arrived to observe the community. The clearing resumed this morning with a far heavier police presence, as around 200 authorities – including around 50 police officers and the deputy governor of Khan Praek Pnov – arrived at the site to oversee the clearing. Around 100 community members gathered in the area to protest, who were photographed and filmed by police and plainclothes authorities.
Community members reported that at least one child and two women, one of whom is pregnant, were injured as a result of today’s altercation. Some people were sent to a nearby hospital for treatment, while other community members reported being forced to leave the area of the dispute.
This week’s clash followed a notice dated 18 February 2024 from the Praek Pnov district administration, which claimed that the disputed land is state land and instructed community members to cease residential activities and co-operate with the land clearing.
The Samrong Tbong Community and its 76 households have been settled in their current area since 1996. The community has long been at risk of losing their land as the government has parcelled off Boeung Tamok lake to private companies and individuals. So far, the government has given away around 80 parcels of land atop the lake, covering nearly 75% of the total area of what was once the capital’s largest lake.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 27, 2024
- Event Description
On 27th February, police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse a group of protesting students near the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. The protest march was organised by the students’ union of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Sri Jayewardenepura University. It was launched to demand solutions to several concerns including issues related to hostels, cafeterias and delays in ‘Mahapola’ scholarship payments.
Police have used tear gas and water cannons to disperse a group of protesting students near the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.
The protest march was organized by the students’ union of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Sri Jayewardenepura University.
The agitation was reportedly launched demanding solutions to several concerns including issues related to hostels, cafeterias and delays in ‘Mahapola’ scholarship payments.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Feb 27, 2024
- Event Description
WHRD Manije Siddiqi was reportedly sentenced to 2 years in prison in February 2024. Part of the Spontaneous Movement of Afghan Women, Manije had been in detention since her arrest on 24 September 2023. She was reportedly held by the intelligence agency for more than 2 months and then transferred to Pul-e Charki prison in early December prior to her sentencing in February. Manije was subsequently released on 6 April as part of an amnesty.
During her detention, fellow activists raised serious concerns about her health and claimed that she had been tortured. Just days before she was released, Manije appeared on an Afghan news program to talk about how well she had been treated while in detention. This statement was almost certainly given under duress as a condition for her release.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
SRMO Afghanistan Civic Space Quarterly Report (January - March 2024)
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Feb 26, 2024
- Event Description
Federal authorities arrested journalist and blogger Asad Ali Toor on February 26 as he responded to a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) summons, three days after he had been interrogated concerning his alleged connection to a “malicious campaign” against senior judicial figures. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), urge authorities to investigate the journalists’ arrest, and ensure his immediate release.
On February 27, Islamabad Judicial Magistrate Mohammad Shabbir granted the FIA a five-day udicial remand of Toor, a partial reduction of the agency’s initial 10-day request. According to Toor’s legal counsel and human rights lawyer Iman Mazari, Toor was arrested on February 26 while reporting to an FIA’s cybercrime investigative body in Islamabad for the second time in three days to “demonstrate his positive intent, answer a summons notice issued to him on Saturday and join the inquiry about the campaign against the judiciary”.
The journalist entered the FIA’s cybercrime facilities just before 5:00 p.m., with officials confirming his arrest after 9:00p.m. that night. In the First Information Report, no specific social media post is listed as justification for the arrest, however Toor’s legal representation have pointed to the journalist’s critical views on social media as a likely cause of his arrest.
Toor was first summoned on February 23, appearing at an FIA cybercrime office in Islamabad concerning his alleged connection to an online campaign targeting senior Pakistani court figures. According to the journalist’s counsel and human rights lawyer, Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir, Toor was held and interrogated for over eight hours, at least two hours of which was without access to legal representation.
Toor was one of 47 journalists and media workers summoned by the FIA ahead of January 31, for their alleged connection to an online campaign targeting Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faiz Isa and the Supreme Judiciary. Toor’s interrogation and subsequent arrest occurred despite assurances from the Attorney General for Pakistan assuring the Supreme Court that the FIA’s notices would not be enforced until after Pakistan’s general election, and an Apex Court adjournment of proceedings until the first week of March.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 26, 2024
- Event Description
The Security Investigation Agency of the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department has issued a third summons for Ngo Thi Oanh Phuong, an influential Facebook user and a critic of conglomerate Vingroup, saying that they received a defamation complaint filed against her by Vingroup, according to a recent Facebook posting of human rights lawyer Dang Dinh Manh.
Previously, Manh wrote on social media that the police had twice summoned Phuong, also known by her Facebook name Phuong Ngo, on Jan. 19 and Jan. 30. In the third summons, dated Feb. 26, they told her to come to the security investigation headquarters on March 4 to question her relations with Tran Mai Son, another critic of Vingroup, and to resolve the defamation report submitted by the conglomerate.
Manh said that Phuong did not come to the previous questioning sessions because she said she was busy. He suggested that if she were absent this time, the investigation agency would issue a warrant to search for her, similar to the warrants the Long An Provincial Police Department filed against him and other human rights lawyers, Nguyen Van Mieng and Dao Kim Lan, last year.
According to Manh, no legal provisions allow Vietnamese investigators to search for people who do not respond to summons. Attorneys Manh, Mieng, and Lan fled to the United States late last year after Long An Provincial Police issued warrants to search for them after they were accused of violating Article 331 of the Penal Code, which concerns “abusing democratic freedoms.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: WHRD summoned over defamation complaint
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Feb 25, 2024
- Event Description
Barangay Councilor Eddie Berania, 58, was found dead hours after elements of 22nd Infantry Battalion (IB) of the Philippine Army (PA) visited him in barangay San Juan Daan, Bulan, Sorsogon, February 25, according to Karapatan Sorsogon report.
Eddie’s family told Karapatan Sorsogon that they found the victim around 7:00 in the morning already dead inside his hut located in his farm. Eddie allegedly committed suicide.
Before the incident, Karapatan Sorsogon explained that Eddie’s family witnessed when a certain Ronnie ‘Tatang’ Albao went to talk to Eddie with the elements of the 22nd IB PA on the same day, February 25 around 6:00 in the morning.
“After the conversation, they saw this group left but Eddie was still standing on his farm,” Karapatan Sorsogon stated in its report.
Defend Bicol Stop the Attacks Network (Defend Bicol) and Karapatan Sorsogon strongly condemned the non-stop intimidation and threats by the soldiers to the victim.
“Eddie’s daughter believed it was suicide, triggered by the non-stop threats against his father. Eddie often tells his family why the soldiers are harassing him despite being a barangay official and he knows nothing about the allegations and what the soldiers are looking for in the area,” said Karapatan Sorsogon.
According to the rights group in the province, the threats to Eddie’s life started in 2022, led by Tatang Albao, a civilian and resident of the neighboring barangay, Brgy. Beguin, Bulan.
“Tatang Albao is also a farmer who was forced to surrender to the AFP and now serves as an accomplice in military operations. The military was forcing Eddie to surrender as an NPA even though he is a civilian and actively serves the barangay as an officer,” the rights group added.
Eddie is the head of the Barangay’s Peace and Order Committee and it is also his second term as barangay councilor. He is also an active member of Manghod Organization, a Civil Society Organization (CSO) in Bulan municipality based in Brgy. San Juan Daan.
Defend Bicol and Karapatan Sorsogon also expressed their condolences to the bereaved family of the victim especially to his wife Luz Gonzales and their seven children.
“Just like the courage shown by the Filipinos during EDSA Uno, Eddie stood up for his rights as a civilian until his death,” the progressive groups stated.
The headquarters of the 22nd IB is based in Brgy. Calomagon, Bulan which is around 16 kilometers away from Eddie’s barangay. Since Feb. 6, 2024 until now, there are approximately 12 soldiers who are stationed in the barangay halls of Brgy. San Juan Daan and Brgy. Beguin, according to Karapatan Sorsogon.
“This new incident in the Bicol region clearly shows that Marcos Jr. administration is not after genuine peace in the country. The peace and order head of the barangay was completely silenced by his soldiers so that they could freely sow terror and threats to other residents in the area,” Karapatan Sorsogon expressed.
Defend Bicol insists on resuming the peace talks in order to address the roots of the armed conflict.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to life
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, NGO staff, Public Servant
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 25, 2024
- Event Description
The Criminal Court has once again denied bail for detained activists Tantawan Tuatulanon and Nutanon Chaimahabut, who are now on the 14th day of a dry hunger strike.
Sommai Tuatulanon, Tantawan’s father, filed a bail request for Tantawan and Nutanon on Saturday (24 February). He was asked to return on Sunday (25 February) when their original detention order would expire, with a medical certificate.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said the Court ruled to deny them bail on the grounds that it has no reason to change its existing order because the two activists are already receiving medical attention, and ordered them detained for 12 more days.
Tantawan and Nutanon were arrested on 13 February on several charges, including sedition, for allegedly honking at and blocking a royal motorcade and for posting dash cam footage of the incident. They were subsequently denied bail.
In a Facebook post on 11 February, Tantawan said that she did not block or cut off the motorcade. She also said she did not know that there was going to be a motorcade. She was on the way back from a funeral and admitted that she was speeding because she was in a hurry.
The dashcam footage shows the vehicle stuck in traffic, and that the horn was sounded when it moves to the front of the line and the lane was blocked by a police vehicle. The footage also shows the vehicle stuck behind another police vehicle while at the exit from the expressway, and a police officer was seen approaching the vehicle before Tantawan was heard arguing.
Immediately after being denied bail, Tantawan and Nutanon went on a dry hunger strike to call for a reform of the justice system, an end to the detention of dissidents, and for Thailand to be rejected when it runs for a seat in the UN Human Rights Council.
Tantawan was transferred to the Thammasat University Hospital last Thursday (22 February). The referral document from the Corrections Hospital states that she has been refusing food and water since 14 February, and that the Corrections Hospital had her transferred because her condition is “beyond their ability” to care for. Nutanon, meanwhile, remains at the Correction Hospital. Both are refusing medical intervention.
Activist Noppasin Treelayapeewat said after the court ruling was issued that the Court had received a petition from Sonthiya Sawasdee, a royalist activist and former Phalang Pracharath MP candidate, objecting to the two activists’ release. He also noted that the Court has yet to take into consideration Sommai’s promise that he would prohibit his daughter from participating in political activism if she is granted bail.
Yesterday (26 February), Sommai and lawyer Krisadang Nutcharus filed a petition with the Chief Justice of the Criminal Court stating that, while Sommai does not wish to file for appeal, he asks that the Court take responsibility for the two activists. The petition notes that they have not been indicted on the charges against them and should be treated as innocent, and says that the court should consider who will be held responsible if they die as a result of being detained.
Sommai said that all he is trying to do is get Tantawan and Nutanon released so they can receive medical attention. He noted that the charges against them are still being investigated and asked how the court could say that they are facing a charge with a high penalty when they have not been indicted. He insisted that they are not a flight risk and that they could not tamper with evidence, and said that the authorities must be held responsible if anything happens to them.
Krisadang said that Tantawan and Nutanon’s condition has worsened, and that the Corrections Hospital will be transferring Nutanon to another hospital but no hospital has accepted the referral. He said that Tantawan’s father wanted to inform the Court of why the two activists must be released, noting that both himself and Sommai believe that any appeal or new bail request they file will be rejected.
Meanwhile, other activists and protesters have been staging a protest at the Victory Monument in Bangkok for the past three days against the denial of bail for Tantawan and Nutanon and demanding the release of other political prisoners.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 25, 2024
- Event Description
Two days after it opened to the public, district authorities ordered Sahmakum Teang Tnaut (STT) to immediately desist their photo exhibition themed “House and Life” in a restaurant in Chbar Ampov on the afternoon of February 25. No reason was given for the shutdown order of the 10-day exhibition planned till March 4.
“The owner of the restaurant told us that the authorities instructed them to dismantle [the exhibits] and stop [the exhibition],” said STT executive director Soeung Saran. “We don’t know what is the reason for the shutdown.”
However, the authorities’ act is a violation of STT’s rights as a civil society organization and an abuse of power by pressuring the restaurant owner to take down the displays, Saran said. The requirement for NGOs to apply for a permit to hold an exhibition is not stipulated by the law.
“I think it affects the freedom of our work, and such impromptu decisions should be fully discussed with stakeholders,” Saran said, adding that he wants to see the authorities “open the door” for civil society organizations to freely organize events.
They should be more understanding towards the common purpose of the work before deciding to stop the exhibition, he remarked.
“Because of this, it affects, firstly, the performance of the institution and, secondly, the reputation of the leadership [Prime Minister Hun Manet] who is trying to reform inaction and persecutions,” he added.
Chbar Ampov district governor Cheng Monyra could not be reached for comment, while Niroth commune chief Tep Prommony claimed that she was busy and in a meeting before hanging up the phone. Prommony did not pick up follow-up calls despite numerous attempts to reach her on Monday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Niroth commune police chief Hor Sylihov declined to comment as to why the authorities instructed the restaurant owner to stop the exhibition or if they had received any complaints. Instead, he referred the reporter to the restaurant owner.
However, Sorn Bormey, manager of Champei Garden Restaurant, declined to comment.
On February 23, 2024, STT launched a photo exhibition showcasing the life of urban poor communities, which revolved around issues of land insecurity and resettlements, lack of pre-arranged services and infrastructure and forced evictions.
The exhibition also highlighted the present condition of city lakes, where several have been filled up, and the environmental impact as a result of their alleged development by companies and public figures.
The event aimed to create awareness to the public, and enable stakeholders, including urban poor communities and the government, to work together to find solutions and promote the right to affordable housing.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 25, 2024
- Event Description
HRD Asanka Abeyrathna, was participating in a protest calling for justice for families of the disappeared, in Matara. The Police confronted protestors and tried to disperse the protest and leaflet distribution, prior to it even beginning. Following an altercation with the protestors and the police, they arrested Asanka. A truck driver transporting sounds etc., and person who got the sound permit, for a parallel event also on enforced disappearances, were also arrested. All 3 were subsequently released without charge, after statements were taken down.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
Case shared by FORUM-ASIA member LST
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 25, 2024
- Event Description
On 25 February 2024, Sanjay Hettimulla, a University of Kelaniya student and an Inter University Students’ Federation (IUSF) activist, was apprehended while attempting to leave the country. This arrest is linked to a case of false allegations of ragging that occurred on the university campus in the year 2022.
Two other student activists who were documented last year, Kelum and Dilshan, were arrested in relation to the same case and imprisoned for more than 5 months, and finally released on bail. These student leaders were all activists in the Inter-University Students' Federation (IUSF) who were very active in the recent people's struggle. This false accusation fed into the larger targeted repression of the student movement.
The incident in question was a clash between two student groups within the university. An internal university investigation clearly stated that this incident wasn't one of ragging, as was falsely claimed. The State however, continues to pursue this case and target activists of the IUSF.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
Case shared by FORUM-ASIA member LST
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 24, 2024
- Event Description
Chinese police on Saturday began wide-scale, rigorous interrogations of Tibetans arrested for protesting a dam project, beating some of them so badly that they required medical attention, three sources told Radio Free Asia.
On Friday, RFA reported exclusively that police had arrested more than a 1,000 Tibetans — both Buddhist monks and local residents — of Wangbuding township in Dege county of Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan province, in central China.
The detainees were “slapped and beaten severely each time they refused to answer important questions,” one source told RFA, speaking on condition of anonymity for personal safety. “Many had to be taken to the hospital.”
Since Feb. 14, monks and residents had been peacefully protesting the planned construction of the Gangtuo hydropower dam on the Drichu River, known as Jinsha River in Chinese.
The dam will force two major communities to be relocated and submerge several monasteries, including the Wonto Monastery, famous for ancient murals dating back to the 13th century.
“One of the monks from Wonto Monastery was among those who had to be immediately rushed to the hospital because he had been beaten so badly that he could not even speak," the first source said. "He also had many severe bruises on his body."
Detainees not given food
Many of those arrested were being held in a police station in Upper Wonto while many others were being held in an old prison in Dege county, sources told RFA.
The detainees are being held in various other places throughout Dege county as the police do not have a place to detain more than 1,000 individuals in a single location.
“In these detention centers, the arrested Tibetans were not given any food, save for some hot water, and many passed out because of the lack of food amid the freezing temperatures,” the second source told RFA.
On Friday, RFA learned that the arrested Tibetans were told to bring their own bedding and tsampa – a Tibetan staple – which sources said were an indication that the detainees would not be released anytime soon.
China has also imposed COVID 19-like restrictions in Dege county and deployed a large number of police to the areas where Tibetans have been detained, including in Upper Wonto, to bring the situation under control, the sources told RFA.
“Each of the police units brought in from outside Dege have been tasked with controlling a community each and for carrying out strict surveillance and suppression of the people there,” a third source told RFA.
“In the communities of Wonto and Yena, people have been restricted from leaving their homes and the restrictions are so severe that it is similar to what happened during the Covid-19 outbreak when the entire place was under lockdown,” said the same source.
Police began arresting the protesters on Thursday, Feb. 22. Citizen videos shared exclusively with RFA showed Chinese officials dressed in black forcibly restraining monks, who can be heard crying out to stop the dam construction.
Reactions
A Canadian foreign ministry spokesperson told RFA the government is closely monitoring the situation in Dege and said the detention of Tibetans was a matter of “grave concern.”
“Canada remains deeply concerned about the human rights situation affecting Tibetans, including restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief, and the protection of linguistic and cultural rights,” said Geneviève Tremblay, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada.
“We urge Chinese authorities to immediately release all those (Tibetans) detained for exercising their rights to freedom of speech and of assembly,” she said.
Citing RFA’s report of the mass arrests, leaders of the Tibetan government-in-exile along with representatives of Tibet support groups from more than 42 countries issued a statement on Saturday expressing alarm.
“The crackdown on non-violent protests in Dege is beyond condemnation. The Chinese authorities’ disregard for the rights of Tibetans is unacceptable by any measure,” said Penpa Tsering, Sikyong or the President of the Central Tibetan Administration.
“The punitive acts demonstrate China’s prioritization of its ideology and interests over human rights,” he said. “We call on the Chinese government to release all those detained and to respect the rights and aspirations of the Tibetan people.”
Tibetans around the world continued to hold demonstrations in solidarity with the protesters, including in Dharamsala, India, home to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. Over the past week, Tibetans have demonstrated in front of Chinese Consulates in New York, Toronto and Zurich.
“I want to underscore how rare (it is that) we are able to have a little window into the situation in Tibet given the escalating control of information the Chinese government has imposed on Tibetan areas,” Maya Wang, interim China director of Human Rights Watch, told RFA by phone.
“People who send information out and videos like this face imprisonment and torture.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Land rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Feb 24, 2024
- Event Description
The para-teachers of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente’s (IFI) Eskwelayan project denounced the harassment of its community organization Samahan ng Maralita sa Temporary Housing (SMTH). They have been subjected to surveillance by the Philippine military.
The first incident happened in March 2023 when soldiers visited them daily at the daycare center, taking photographs of their operations and asking for their personal information.
“Those military personnel, we [welcomed] them, we also included them in our clean-up drives. Unfortunately, they had a different motive,” Teacher Mariafe Hulipaz, president of Samahan ng Maralita sa Temporary Housing (SMTH), told Bulatlat.
The organization is a key partner of the IFI in the Eskwelayan Project, an alternative school program that offers a rights-based education to children in Aroma, Tondo.
“The harassment faced by the leaders of SMTH deeply troubles us. It prompts us to reflect on why the military is targeting this community-based, cause-oriented group that is simply advocating for their fundamental rights to housing and livelihood,” The Rt. Rev’d Dindo Ranojo, IFI general secretary, said in a statement.
Continued harassment
The SMTH was established in 2016 due to threats of demolition in the community. It advocates for the rights of the residents in housing and livelihood.
“Our families are affected by demolition since they will displace us far from our livelihood here and that’s what we are fighting against,” Hulipaz said.
The state forces also profiled the organization as affiliated with progressive groups.
According to SMTH, they only asked for help from Rep. Arlene Brosas of Gabriela Women’s Partylist regarding the housing opportunities of the government to also help those affected by the demolitions. They said that the SMTH is not affiliated with Gabriela.
“The military always imposed on us the question on how SMTH survives or became progressive if we are not affiliated with any organization,” Delia Gatela, vice president of SMTH, said.
In February 2024, several incidents of red-tagging were documented involving the 11th Civil Military Operations Kaugnayan Battalion’s Facebook post. Some residents are tagged as members of SMTH under the pretext of “fake surrenders.” Another post indicated that they would later sign a commitment of support to the NTF-ELCAC.
“Not all of the 284 are SMTH members, and some of the SMTH members simply received aid [ayuda], but they didn’t know that they would be labeled as surrenderers by the military. Two of our former members allied with the military, when the military found out that there was a problem between SMTH and our former comrades, the soldier got the idea to use them to create a new community organization because the military couldn’t enter the community of SMTH,” Hulipaz said.
Complaints
The teachers filed a barangay blotter and a formal complaint with the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) against the military personnel. However, only high-ranking officers faced the organization.
“We want to face the military personnel who red-tagged us in the community because they are the ones who did bad things to our organization,” SMTH said.
The IFI expressed solidarity with SMTH and with the residents of Brgy. Aroma. The IFI also supports their quest for a better situation and wholeheartedly believes that their aspirations are justified and morally right.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Surveillance , Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 24, 2024
- Event Description
The East Kalimantan Police have temporarily suspended the detention of nine citizens who were arrested for halting the opening of land for the Capital City of Indonesia project (IKN). The citizens can continue the land verification process and legal proceedings will still proceed.
"The nine perpetrators have received a suspension of detention, but the legal process continues," said Head of Public Relations Department of East Kalimantan Regional Police, Commissioner Artanto, on Sunday (3/3/2024).
The suspension of detention was carried out on Friday (1/3/2024). The nine citizens have already been declared as suspects by the police. Therefore, the legal process for the citizens continues at the East Kalimantan Regional Police.
Previously, the residents were reported by workers at the Very Very Important Person (VVIP) IKN Airport project. According to the police report, nine residents halted the activity of workers who were clearing land for the VVIP IKN Airport project.
Residents say that the land is their cultivation area, namely Saloloang Farmer Group. Therefore, they request that the land not be opened before there is a scheduled land verification by the government.
However, the project workers ultimately reported the residents to the police. The police arrested the residents because they were deemed to have made threats and carried sharp weapons such as machetes or mandau while halting the land clearing activity.
Residents have been detained and interrogated by police since February 24, 2024. "Those who requested a postponement of detention (nine residents) were Penajam Paser Utara Acting Regent, Makmur Marbun," said Artanto.
Head of Public Relations and Protocol Division of PPU Regency Secretary Hendro Susilo stated that as a guarantee to the citizens, Acting Regent of PPU sent a written letter to the Kaltim Regional Police. He added that the PPU Regency Government hopes that the issue faced by the citizens will not reoccur, especially in the construction site location of the IKN VVIP Airport.
"Meaning, convey the existing issues to the authorized party related to this matter, including to the Acting Regent of PPU who is also the Chairman of the Agrarian Reform Team of PPU District," said Hendro.
Land verification is underway Before the suspension of land opening, the suspects and 22 other residents accompanied by the Development Policy Assistance Network (JPKP). Assistance was provided in managing their land recognition, but also as a point for the development of the IKN VVIP Airport.
The Chairman of JPKP, Maret Samuel Sueken, said that land verification is the process of proving whether citizens have the right to crops or land based on evidence. Residents claim that their land is ancestral land that has been cultivated since 1965.
Residents have a legal claim to the land in the form of a seal and permission to cultivate the land. Maret stated that residents will also prove that they manage the land by showing the existence of plants and trees that they have planted.
According to him, residents halted the opening of land in the IKN VVIP Airport to prevent the removal of evidence of crops that had already been planted by locals. This is because the residents have already received a schedule for verifying their land.
When stopping the activity, the residents did indeed carry a kind of machete and machete on their waist. However, Maret said, those were tools that the villagers brought when farming. "It's called the land needs verification, residents clean the road to their garden. So they use machetes and the like for that," said Maret.
The nine detained individuals, according to Maret, are both heads of families and land managers. As such, this detention suspension could assist the land verification process more optimally. "The land verification process is still ongoing," he said.
- Impact of Event
- 9
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 23, 2024
- Event Description
Police on Friday arrested more than 1,000 Tibetans, including monks from at least two local monasteries, in southwestern China’s Sichuan province after they protested the construction of a dam expected to destroy six monasteries and force the relocation of two villages, two sources from inside Tibet told Radio Free Asia.
The arrested individuals – both monks and local residents – are being held in various places throughout Dege county in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture because the police do not have a single place to detain them, said the sources who requested anonymity for safety reasons.
Those arrested have been forced to bring their own bedding and tsampa – a staple food for Tibetans that can be used to sustain themselves for long periods of time, the sources said.
“That police are asking Tibetans to bring their own tsampa and bedding is a sign that they will not be released anytime soon,” one of the sources said.
On Thursday, Feb. 22, Chinese authorities deployed specially trained armed police in Kardze’s Upper Wonto village region to arrest more than 100 Tibetan monks from Wonto and Yena monasteries along with local residents, many of whom were beaten and injured, and later admitted to Dege County Hospital for medical treatment, sources said.
Citizen videos from Thursday, shared exclusively with RFA, show Chinese officials in black uniforms forcibly restraining monks, who can be heard crying out to stop the dam construction.
Following news of the mass arrests, many Tibetans from Upper Wonto village who work in other parts of the country returned to their hometown and visited the detention centers to call for the release of the arrested Tibetans, sources said. They, too, were arrested.
The Dege County Hospital did not immediately return RFA’s requests for comment.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington hasn’t commented on the arrests other than in a statement issued Thursday that said the country respects the rule of law.
“China protects the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese nationals in accordance with the law," the statement said.
Massive dam project
The arrests followed days of protests and appeals by local Tibetans since Feb. 14 for China to stop the construction of the Gangtuo hydropower station.
RFA reported on Feb. 14 that at least 300 Tibetans gathered outside Dege County Town Hall to protest the building of the Gangtuo Dam, which is part of a massive 13-tier hydropower complex on the Drichu River with a total planned capacity 13,920 megawatts.
The dam project is on the Drichu River, called Jinsha in Chinese, which is located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze, one of China’s most important waterways.
Local Tibetans have been particularly distraught that the construction of the hydropower station will result in the forced resettlement of two villages – Upper Wonto and Shipa villages – and six key monasteries in the area – Yena, Wonto, and Khardho in Wangbuding township in Dege county, and Rabten, Gonsar and Tashi in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, sources told RFA.
Sources on Friday also confirmed that some of the arrested monks with poor health conditions were allowed to return to their monasteries.
However, the monasteries – which include Wonto Monastery, known for its ancient murals dating back to the 13th century – remained desolate on the eve of Chotrul Duchen, or the Day of Miracles, which is commemorated on the 15th day of the first month of the Tibetan New Year, or Losar, and marks the celebration of a series of miracles performed by the Buddha.
“In the past, monks of Wonto Monastery would traditionally preside over large prayer gatherings and carry out all the religious activities,” said one of the sources. “This time, the monasteries are quiet and empty. … It’s very sad to see such monasteries of historical importance being prepared for destruction. The situation is the same at Yena Monastery.”
Protests elsewhere
Tibetans in exile have been holding mass demonstrations in various parts of the world, including in Dharamsala, India, home to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
In the past week, Tibetans have demonstrated before the Chinese embassies, including those in New York and Switzerland, with more such protests and solidarity campaigns planned in Canada and other countries.
“The events in Derge [Dege] are an example of Beijing’s destructive policies in Tibet,” said Kai Müller, managing director of the International Campaign for Tibet, in a statement on Friday. “The Chinese regime tramples on the rights of Tibetans and ruthlessly and irretrievably destroys valuable Tibetan cultural assets.”
“Beijing’s development and infrastructure projects are not only a threat to Tibetans, but also to regional security, especially when it comes to water supplies to affected Asian countries,” he added.
Human Rights Watch told RFA that it is monitoring the development but that information from inside Tibet is extremely rare given China’s tight surveillance and restrictions imposed on information flow.
“People who send information out and videos like this face imprisonment and torture,” said Maya Wang, the group’s interim China director.
“Even calling families in the diaspora are reasons for imprisonment,” she said. “What we do see now are actually … typical scenes of repression in Tibet, but we don’t often get to see [what] repression looks like in Tibet anymore.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Land rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 22, 2024
- Event Description
Managing Director at Pakhribas FM and editor at Pakhribas weekly published from Shankhuwasabha, Prem Niraula, was manhandled while reporting on February 22. Shankhuwasabha lies in the Koshi Province of Nepal.
Freedom Forum talked to journalist Niraula about the incident. Niraula said that he was manhandled while reporting in the Chainpur-6 Mini Fair organized by the youth clubs. "I had published news about a memorandum submitted by a local Asal Sashan Club to the local administrative authority on the possible gambling practices in the fair. As before, we wanted to make the authority aware of such bad practices in the fair", he added.
"On Thursday (February 22), I went to the fair to take photos of people playing games but suddenly the organizers team came to me and pulled my clothes saying why I published news in the weekly. They took away my jacket, sweater and mobile phone. They also chased me away while I was returning home", Niraula shared.
Niraula has not received his belongings back yet. He is seeking support from fellow journalists and Federation of Nepali Journalists, Sankhuwasabha, to get his mobile phone back.
FF also talked to the Area Police Office, Chainpur Inspector Baburam Karki. Inspector Karki however said that the case was not registered yet in the police station. The case seems to be about their personal dispute, he observed.
FF's representative Bikram Niraula infomed that both the parties (journalist and youths) have mutually agreed to end their dispute and coperate eachother. The youths have also agreed to return back journalist's Niraula's mobile phone. The process was facilitated by FNJ, Sankhuwsabha chapter on February 26.
Freedom Forum condemns the attack upon a journalist while reporting. FF urges the concerned local authorities to investigate the case seriously and ensure justice to the journalist.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 22, 2024
- Event Description
Chinese officials arrested more than 100 Tibetan monks and other ethnic Tibetans in China’s southwestern Sichuan province on Thursday to quell protests against a massive dam project that would destroy six Buddhist monasteries and force the relocation of two villages, three sources told Radio Free Asia.
In a rare act of defiance, residents have taken to the streets of Wangbuding township in Dege County in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture since Feb. 14 to oppose the plan to build the 1,110-megawatt Gangtuo hydropower station on the Drichu River (Jinsha in Chinese), which is located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze, one of China’s most important waterways.
Residents were particularly distraught that construction of the hydroelectric dam would destroy six monasteries, including the Wonto Monastery, which includes ancient murals that date to the 13th century, the sources said.
Citizen videos exclusively shared with RFA show Chinese officials dressed in black forcibly restraining monks, who can be heard crying out against the dam.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said he was not aware of the arrests. "China is a country under the rule of law," he said in an emailed statement. "China protects the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese nationals in accordance with the law."
The detentions reportedly occurred in the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan, an area with a large population of ethnic Tibetans. Some of the arrested protesters required hospitalization due to rough treatment, sources said.
Local sources who spoke with RFA despite the Chinese government’s effort to restrict communication from the area said police officers used water cannons, pepper spray and tasers to subdue the protesters. The videos shared with RFA do not show those tactics, however.
Rising opposition
The protests started on Feb. 14, when at least 300 Tibetans gathered outside the Dege County Townhall to protest the dam. Such protests are rare in China, particularly among Tibetans, due to strict controls on public gatherings and extensive surveillance by authorities.
The construction of the Gangtuo hydropower dam will force the resettlement of the Upper Wonto and Shipa villages and the Yena, Wonto and Khardho monasteries in Dege county, and the Rabten, Gonsar and Tashi monasteries in Chamdo township, sources told RFA.
The Wonto and Yena monasteries, which are located closest to the site of the planned project, together have about 300 monks and hold significant cultural and religious importance to locals.
The Wonto Monastery was severely damaged during China’s Cultural Revolution. Locals preserved its ancient murals, however, and began rebuilding the monastery in 1983
The number of monks who live and worship at the four other monasteries slated for destruction is not known.
About 2,000 people live in the two villages and would be forced to relocate due to the dam project, sources told RFA.
The Gangtuo dam is part of a plan that China’s National Development and Reform Commission announced in 2012 to build a massive 13-tier hydropower complex on the Drichu. It would be located at Wontok (or Gangtuo in Chinese), Dege county, northwest of the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan province.
The planned capacity of the 13 hydropower stations is 13,920 megawatts.
Chinese authorities closed all the main roads and imposed strict restrictions, including on digital access, on the villages and monasteries in the Wangbuding township following the Feb. 14 protests.
On Feb 20, as authorities inspected Yena and Wonto monasteries in preparation for their demolition, video footage obtained by RFA showed monks prostrating themselves before the visiting Chinese officials to plead with them to halt the construction of the dam.
The appeals continued today. But by then Chinese officials apparently had had enough, and the arrests began. Officials also reportedly confiscated the mobile phones of protesters. Some locals though avoided arrest and were able to record elements of the crackdown.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Land rights defender, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 22, 2024
- Event Description
The Phnom Penh Appeal Court this morning upheld the 2021 decision of the Kampong Chhnang Provincial Court convicting three Lor Peang Community members of “obstruction of public official” and “intentionally causing damage” as part of a long-running land conflict. The three community members are Nhem Nhuen (also known as Snguon Nhuen), Reach Seima and Pul Sorn.
Lor Peang Community has resisted community members’ land being encroached by KDC International, a company owned by Chea Kheng, the wife of former Minister of Mines and Energy Suy Sem. The charges stem from an incident in 2013, when KDC International began establishing borders over the disputed land in Kampong Chhnang province. Members of Lor Peang Community arrived at the site to protest, during which a temporary security guard hut was destroyed.
Almost eight years later, the provincial court convicted the three Lor Peang Community members under Articles 503 and 410 of the Criminal Code. All received suspended sentences of 2 years and 6 months and were ordered to pay compensation of 2.8 million riel (approximately US$700), a decision that was today upheld by the Appeal Court.
None of the three community members were ordered to pre-trial detention pending final appeal. One of the defendants, Pul Sorn, has since died.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 22, 2024
- Event Description
In a fresh round of blocking social media accounts Read more at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/108250590.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Censorship, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Internet freedom, Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 21, 2024
- Event Description
Executive Editor Tekman Shakya and reporter Sunita Gautam at www.nepalesetimes.com were taken under control for some hours while reporting on February 21. The incident took place in Kathmandu.
Editor Shakya shared with Freedom Forum that he and reporter Gautam were taking video of the people demonstrating at Department of Foreign Employment. The people were defrauded in course of foreign employment and protesting at the Department.
"Meanwhile, police officers came to me and asked why I was taking videos. As we showed them our press identity cards issued by the Department of Information and Broadcasting, one of the officers said that the card could be bought anywhere", said Shakya. "Thereafter, the officers forcefully took us under control for at least three hours in a nearby police station. They also seized our mobile phones and camera", he added.
Later, a senior police officer came and released them, according to Shakya.
Freedom Forum condemns the intimidation of police persons towards journalists. Barring the journalists from reporting and taking them under control and seizing media devices is an absolute violation of press freedom.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 21, 2024
- Event Description
Responding to the death of the 22- year-old farmer Shubhkaran Singh during the ‘Dilli Chalo’ Farmers’ march, Aakar Patel, chair of board at Amnesty International India, said:
“The death of Shubhkaran Singh occurred amid a ruthless crackdown by the state authorities on the farmers protests in India. Authorities must carry out a prompt, effective, thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the cause and circumstances of the death of the protestor, and ensure the suspected perpetrators are brought to justice through fair trials without recourse to death penalty.
“With more protests planned for the coming days, authorities must do all in their power to ensure that people can peacefully voice their concerns, without fear of injury or death. The Government of India must respect, protect and facilitate the right to freedom of peaceful assembly in line with its international human rights obligations.
“The price of protest must not be death.”
Indian authorities must do all in their power to ensure that people can peacefully voice their concerns, without fear of injury or death.
Aakar Patel, chair of board at Amnesty International India Background: Farmer Shubh Karan Singh’s death on 21 February 2024 at the border of Punjab and Haryana is the first since the protests began on 13 February. As per media reports, the cause of death was a bullet wound to the head as shared by medical superintendent of Patiala based Rajindra Hospital. The postmortem report is awaited.
At least 13 more people were being treated for injuries and as per statement from the police, approximately 12 police were also injured in clashes with the protestors.
Over 200 farmers’ unions are participating in the ‘Dilli Chalo’ march raising twelve demands including the legal guarantee of minimum support price (MSP) for all crops which the Government had promised in 2021.
Previously, Amnesty International has raised concerns on the increasing threat to the right to peaceful protest due to excessive use of force, blanket bans, internet shutdowns and arbitrary arrests of protestors in the Farmers’ march.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to life, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 21, 2024
- Event Description
The Fort Magistrate's Court issued an order barring the National Assets Protection Movement from entering and holding protests at several key locations in Colombo, including the Ceramic Junction.
The order was made after considering the submissions made by the Fort Police OIC.
The court order specifically prohibits the National Assets Protection Movement and its representatives from: blocking access to the Ceramic Junction, NSK Roundabout, Baladaksha Mawatha, and Galle Road.
They are also barred from entering the premises of the Ministry of Finance, the President's Office, and the Central Bank.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 21, 2024
- Event Description
Sitanun Satsaksit, sister of missing activist in exile Wanchalearm Satsaksit, was met by a police blockade yesterday (21 February) when she attempted to protest in front of the Shinawatra family residence during a visit by former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen with Thaksin Shinawatra.
Sitanun travelled to Baan Chan Song La, the Shinawatra family residence, yesterday morning (21 February) intending to demand information about her brother’s disappearance after it was reported that Hun Sen would be visiting Thaksin, who has been released on parole.
However, police officers blocked her car, preventing her from reaching the residence. She decided instead to protest in front of the Siam Commercial Bank’s Sirindhorn Road branch, where she was surrounded by over 50 plainclothes officers.
Sitanun told Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) that she was held there for over 3 hours and that the police told her not to go anywhere without permission. She felt threatened because she was being surrounded by many men in plainclothes. She also noticed a unit of women crowd control officers moving towards her, but after she asked one of the men what they were doing there, the women officers moved away.
Sitanun also noticed during her conversation with the plainclothes officers that some of them has information about her place of work and could speak about specific incidents that only a person in the same building would know. The conversation made her feel unsafe, since she believed that she has been closely watched.
Sitanun said she came seeking the truth of her brother’s disappearance, since he went missing in Cambodia and used to work for the Pheu Thai Party before fleeingThailand.
Sitanun said that, while she was driving to Baan Chan Song La, she was surrounded by many police officers who asked her where she was going. When she told them her destination, she heard an officer shout an order to arrest her. She was frightened and decided to drive away and stop in front of the bank, a crowded, public area.
Deputy police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn later came to speak to Sitanun. He insisted the police were not ordered to arrest her on sight, and tried to ask her what she planned to do once she got to Baan Chan Song La. He also told her that it would affect Thailand’s reputation if she protests in front of Baan Chan Song La and that she should speak to him about what grievance she has.
Sitanun submitted a petition to Pol Gen Surachate calling for the Thai authorities to follow up on Wanchalearm’s disappearance, after the Cambodian delegation said during a review by the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) that, although Wanchalearm went missing in Cambodia, no agents of the Cambodian government were involved in his disappearance. She also filed a complaint about the police harassment she experienced.
Sitanun was finally released after Cross-Cultural Foundation director Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, as Sitanun’s lawyer, told the police that Sitanun should be free to go since there is no reason to continue holding her. Sitanun headed to parliament to run an errand. However, she noticed while leaving the parliament building that she was being followed by plainclothes officers driving a car and at least 2 motorcycles.
TLHR said that a friend of Sitanun who announced on Facebook on Tuesday night (20 February) that Sitanun was staging a protest in front of Baan Chan Song La received a phone call from a person working for the Pheu Thai Party asking for information on Sitanun’s protest.
The friend received another phone call from anoter person in the Pheu Thai Party, who told her that they are worried about the protest and that speeches might be given insulting Thaksin and his daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra in front of the family’s residence. The person told the friend to calm down, and that if they are not listened to, there will not be any more space to talk about Wanchalearm’s disappearance.
TLHR also noted that, while Sitanun was prevented from reaching the Shinawatra residence, Thaksin’s supporters, as well as others who said they used to support him but no longer do, were allowed to gather in front of the house and spoke to the media.
Pornpen said that many victims of enforced disappearance suffered the same fate as Wanchalearm. She called on the Cambodian government, as a signatory of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED), to investigate what happened. She also called on the Thai authorities to follow up on the case with Hun Sen, who oversaw the investigation in Cambodia. She believes Cambodia authorities have enough information to make a case and thinks that the government should do its job to deliver justice to victims of enforced disappearance and their families.
Wanchalearm disappeared on 4 June 2020 while living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where he fled after the 2014 military coup. Both the Thai and Cambodian authorities have repeatedly denied any knowledge of his whereabouts. The Cambodian authorities said after his abduction that his visa had expired on 31 December 2017 and that there was no evidence of him living in Phnom Penh. However, Wanchalearm’s sister Sitanun Satsaksit said he was travelling under a Cambodian passport with a Khmer alias and that he had a Cambodian bank account. So far, no progress has been made in the investigation into his disappearance.
A 2022 report by Prachatai and VOD found links between Wanchalearm and political elites both in Thailand and Cambodia. He was also deeply embedded in the Red Shirt Movement and had worked for the Pheu Thai Party. Sitanun said he worked for the current Bangkok governor, Chadchart Sittipunt from 2012 – 2014 when Chadchart was minister of transport in the cabinet of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin’s sister. Meanwhile, Thai dissident in exile Nuttigar Woratunyawit said he was part of an initiative to create an online network of Red Shirt activists and Pheu Thai supporters to counter the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, which was established by right-wing royalists in 2013 to depose the Yingluck government.
After arriving in Cambodia, Wanchalerm reportedly became acquainted with Khliang Huot, the former governor of Phnom Penh’s Chroy Changva district, who has been identified by several sources as a ‘handler’ for Thai exiles who fled to Cambodia following the 2014 coup. A photograph on Huot’s Facebook account in 2012 shows the man standing next to Thaksin and Hun Sen. Other photos show him with various Thai political figures, including Red Shirt leaders, former MPs and ministers from Yingluck’s cabinet.
He was also a supporter of fellow Thai exiles, many of whom sought advice from him about how to escape into Cambodia.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 21, 2024
- Event Description
In the midst of the National Press Day (HPN) celebration which was closed by President Joko Widodo in Ancol, Central Jakarta, Tuesday (20/2/2024), a shocking news came from Labuhanbatu, North Sumatra.
A journalist named Samuel Tampubolon, who is also a contributor to TribrataTV and klikindonesia.co, allegedly suffered persecution by the Labuhanbatu Police Chief, AKBP Bernhard L. Malau.
According to Samuel, who is also the Treasurer of DPD Pro Jurnalismedia Siber (PJS) North Sumatera, the persecution occurred in front of Nuansa Hotel on Jalan Sisingamangaraja Rantauprapat, Wednesday (21/2/2024) night at around 20.00 WIB.
"Previously, I had an appointment to meet with the Chief of Police through the Head of Narcotics AKP Roberto P Sianturi. But for some reason, I was beaten like this," said Samuel when talking via telephone with the Chairman of the DPP PJS Mahmud Marhaba.
For this incident, various criticisms and demands came from journalist organizations, including PJS.
The Chairman of DPD PJS North Sumatera, Sofyan Siahaan, strongly condemned the violence.
"Law enforcement officers who are supposed to protect and protect actually commit acts of violence, this cannot be tolerated. Moreover, it was done by a Police Chief along with some of his members," said Sofyan.
He asked the Chief of Police and the North Sumatra Police Chief to immediately take action against the Labuhanbatu Police Chief and several other personnel who participated in the beating, including the Chief of Drugs.
"This action is very tarnishing the good name of the police institution. At a time when the Kapolri is aggressively building a good image of the police, it is actually damaged by its ranks," he said again.
"We urge the Kapolri to remove AKBP Bernhard Malau from his position because he does not reflect a good law enforcement officer, protect and protect the community," said Sofyan.
The Chairman of the DPP PJS, Mahmud Marhaba, deeply regretted the actions of the Police Chief's class officers who committed this brutal act.
"Everywhere, if there is something that makes someone offended, it should be done through the legal process, not taking the law into your own hands," said Mahmud, who is also a Press Council Expert.
He also added, if it is related to journalistic work, it must be resolved at the Press Council.
"If you have a dispute with journalistic work, exercise the right of reply or the right of correction. "Everything comes down to the Press Council, it's not done with an iron fist, especially at the level of the Police Chief," said Mahmud.
Mahmud also supports the demands of the Chairman of the North Sumatra PJS DPD, Sofyan Siahaan, who asked the North Sumatra Police Chief and North Sumatra Regional Police Chief to act professionally against every leader or member of the National Police who makes fatal mistakes that tarnish the name of the institution and must be dealt with firmly.
Until now, Samuel Tampubolon has been referred to a hospital in Medan due to a heavy blow to his head.
"We from PJS are accompanying Samuel together with his attorney to report the alleged act of abuse to the North Sumatra Police Propam," said Sofyan to the Chairman of the PJS DPP.
The Labuhanbatu Police Chief, AKBP Bernhard L. Malau, who was asked for his response by the Pemredklikindonesia.co via WhatsApp chat on number 08137512XXXX, stated that he did not carry out the beating.
"That's not true, bro. No one hit him, if I was angry, yes," said the Police Chief on the sidelines of attending a gathering for the Acting Governor of North Sumatra, Wednesday (21/02/2024).
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 20, 2024
- Event Description
A ward chairperson verbally denigrated right to information activist Shiva Prasad Adhikari for requesting information on February 20 in Kathmandu.
Activist Adhikari shared with Freedom Forum that he had filed an RTI application at Tarakeshwor Municipality, seeking information on ongoing development projects and their proposed budgets.
“I received incomplete and unclear information when I filed and RTI application at the municipality two months back. But, as I did not get any response, I filed an appeal at the National Information Commission”, he said.
On the day of appeal, Adhikari received a call from a ward chairperson of the municipality Shyam Krishna Sapkota asking to meet him. “As I met him, he asked abusively why I did not reach anti-graft body in case of any proof of aberration rather than requesting information again and again and troubling the government staffs”, Adhikari shared.
Freedom Forum is concerned over the misbehavior of a local authority to an RTI activist. It is a violation of citizen’s right to information which is guaranteed by the constitution. FF urges the concerned authorities to respond to the applicant’s request.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Right to information
- HRD
- RTI activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 20, 2024
- Event Description
A 53-year-old woman has been charged with royal defamation for a protest speech she made demanding the right to bail for detained political activists.
Kittiya (last name withheld), a food vendor from Si Sa Ket Province, came to the Yannawa Police Station in Bangkok on Tuesday to acknowledge a royal defamation charge, which stemmed from her activity during a protest in front of the Bangkok South Criminal Court in 2022 where she demanded the right to bail for the detained political activists.
Kittiya told a reporter that she received a summons under the royal defamation law and the Computer-related Crime Act on 17 February. Given that the summons required her to report to the Police Station on 15 February, she asked the police to issue a new summons but her request was denied. Rapeephong Chaiyarat, a member of the ultra-loyalist ‘People’s Centre for the Protection of the Monarchy’ filed the complaint.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights reports that Kittaya was initially charged under the Sound Amplifier Act after she gave a speech on 19 July 2022. However, the police later concluded that her actions violated the royal defamation law, leading to additional charges.
Kittiya stated that she was not concerned about being prosecuted under the royal defamation law and it would not prevent her from continuing to fight for justice in the country. “Section 112 will not cause me to stop fighting or be disheartened. The country is being ruined like this. We need to move forward.” said Kittiya. The food vendor acknowledged that the situation might force her to close her restaurant, causing her employees to lose their jobs and her family to lose income.
She called for the proposed amnesty bill to include those charged with royal defamation as 112 cases are prolonged, causing difficulties for those prosecuted. She added that as the law allowed anyone to file a complaint, even parties not directly affected, it can be used to harass others by hiring people to file complaints
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 19, 2024
- Event Description
Indian authorities must drop the charges against journalist Santu Pan, who was arrested live on air while reporting on allegations of abuse by West Bengal officials, and investigate the earlier assault of three journalists reporting on clashes related to one of those officials, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Thursday.
On Monday, police arrested Pan, who works for the privately owned news broadcaster Republic Bangla, while he was reporting from a woman’s home in the village of Sandeshkhali, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of West Bengal’s state capital, Kolkata, and remanded him in police custody for three days, according to news reports. Pan’s arrest was captured in a video by Republic World.
Pan, who was freed on bail on Thursday, was reporting on weeks of protests by local women over alleged rape and sexual assault by officials with West Bengal’s ruling All India Trinamool Congress (AITC). One of the alleged assailants has fled, while another was arrested.
On Thursday, Calcutta High Court ordered a stay on further proceedings in the police investigation into Pan for violating multiple sections of the penal code. If charged and found guilty of criminal trespass, Pan could face imprisonment for up to three months; for house trespass, imprisonment for up to one year; for outraging the modesty of a woman, imprisonment for up to three years; for voyeurism, imprisonment for up to three years; and for criminal intimidation, imprisonment for up to two years.
The unrest in Sandeshkhali started on January 5, when hundreds of supporters of an AITC official attacked federal officials with the Enforcement Directorate who had arrived to conduct a raid on the official’s house over an alleged scam regarding government-subsidized food distribution, according to news reports. Several officials were injured, their vehicles set on fire, and their laptops and phones were looted, those sources said.
Journalist Ayan Ghoshal of the privately owned news broadcaster Zee 24 Ghanta and reporter Sandeep Sarkar and camera operator Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya of the privately owned news broadcaster ABP Ananda were stoned, beaten with sticks, and kicked, during clashes between crowds and officials in Sandeshkhali, those sources said, as well as Ghoshal. Their cameras and other equipment were stolen and broken, and their vehicles were damaged, those sources said.
Sarkar said in an interview with his outlet ABP Ananda that he was beaten by the crowd and forced to unlock his phone. When the crowd saw the photos that he had taken, Sarkar and his driver were beaten again, their car was damaged, and their video live streaming equipment was stolen, he said. The crowd also beat his colleague Chattopadhyaya and snatched and broke his camera, Sarkar added.
In an article in The Telegraph an anonymous journalist said that they were chased and beaten by people who snatched their camera and destroyed it. They are undergoing medical tests after vomiting, they added. Ghoshal told CPJ that his vehicle was the first to be targeted and damaged by the crowd with stones, bricks, and sticks.
“It is disturbing to witness the growing intolerance of press freedom in West Bengal,” said Kunāl Majumder, CPJ’s India representative. “Authorities in West Bengal must drop all charges against journalist Santu Pan, investigate the violence meted out against reporters covering unrest in Sandeshkhali, and ensure that the media can do their jobs without fear or interference.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 18, 2024
- Event Description
A 21-year-old activist has been arrested for royal defamation over a social media post of a picture of a man holding 2 pieces of paper with offensive messages in front of a picture of the King and Queen. He was later granted bail.
On 18 January, an activist ‘Bank’ Natthaphon (surname withheld), was arrested by police from Thung Song Hong Police Station for a Facebook post of a man in black wearing a crash helmet and holding 2 pieces of paper with offensive messages in front of a picture of the King and Queen. Another activist, ‘Ta’ Khathathon was also a suspect, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
The complaint was filed by Anon Klinkaew, leader of the ultra-royalist group People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy.
Natthaphon stated that he was arrested in the middle of the night in front of his own home. While heading home, he was cut off by plainclothes police on a motorcycle. He said he was surrounded by 8-9 men. Some were disguised as homeless people in the area.
The police did not show him an arrest warrant, but instead read it to him briefly. He was taken to Samran Rat Police Station, where he was not able to contact anyone until after his arrest was recorded. Natthaphon was informed that he was charged under the royal defamation law and the Computer-Related Crime Act.
The arrest record claimed that he tried to flee. In fact, he was arrested at his own home and had not received a summons. Natthaphon refused the fingerprinting process and denied all allegations. As a result, he faced an additional charge of failing to follow an official’s order. He was detained overnight.
On 19 January, Natthaphon was taken to court for a detention hearing. On the same day, the court granted bail with 180,000 baht as security on the condition that he does not commit the same offence.
Natthaphon was previously prosecuted for royal defamation after being accused of burning a royal arch in front of the Ministry of Labour during a protest on 14 September 2021. That case is in the witness examination stage.
He was also prosecuted for setting fire to a police truck during a protest on 11 June 2022. In this case, he was detained twice: during the investigation and the trial. Initially, he was detained for eight months before being granted bail. After the court sentenced him to three years in prison, he was detained for two months before being granted bail on condition that he wear an Electronic Monitoring bracelet.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 18, 2024
- Event Description
Chinese activist filmmaker Chen Pinlin has been formally charged in Shanghai with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” according to human rights NGOs and media sources in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based NGO, said on Thursday that on Jan. 5 police in Shanghai arrested Chen, who produced and released a film called “Not the Foreign Force” in English and “Urumqi Road” in Chinese, in November. Chen, who also uses the name Plato, has been held at the Baoshan Detention Center ever since and was charged on Feb. 18.
The offence of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” is a broadly defined crime often used against activists, lawyers and media workers.
Chen’s film was about the protest movement that became known as white paper movement and was released on YouTube and X (formerly Twitter) on the first anniversary of the movement’s emergence.
The protests began in November 2022 after an apartment building in Xinjiang caught fire and killed at least ten people. There were questions whether China’s strict anti-COVID lockdown measures prevented the victims from escaping or the rescue workers accessing the property.
The protests were calculated to be the largest public demonstrations in many years in mainland China. But, even though many protestors were careful to only hold up sheets of blank paper and avoided directly criticizing the central or provincial governments, their acts were construed as criticism of the state and its censorship system. Many people were reported to have been arrested in Shanghai, but the exact number is not known.
Attention to the White Paper Movement is believed to be partly responsible for charges against another filmmaker late last year. Chinese authorities banned artist and film director Guo Zhenming from traveling to Singapore for the world premiere of his documentary film “Tedious Days and Nights.”
The film was scheduled to play at the Singapore International Film Festival on Dec. 4 in the festival’s Standpoint strand. The screening went ahead without him.
Details of Chen’s charges have not been confirmed by mainland Chinese authorities. But they have been reported from media outside the mainland including the Hong Kong Free Press and Chinese-language human rights news websites Minsheng Guancha and Weiquanwang.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Artist
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 17, 2024
- Event Description
The Police today (17) utilised water cannons and tear gas to disperse a protest organised by the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) near the University of Sri Jayawardenapura.
The demonstration aimed at highlighting and seeking solutions to the challenges confronting the state university system.
As the protest march approached Wijerama from the university’s front, law enforcement deployed tear gas and water cannons on five separate occasions.
The confrontations resulted in heated situations between the police and the participating students.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Feb 17, 2024
- Event Description
Mansoor Nekmal, the Editor in Chief of Khaama Press, was arrested on 17 February after being summoned to the de facto Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Promotion of Virtue. Khaama had recently published a story about the Taliban arresting women for not wearing ‘proper’ hijab. He was detained for approximately 24 hours.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
SRMO Afghanistan Civic Space Quarterly Report (January - March 2024)
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 16, 2024
- Event Description
A Hong Kong activist with terminal cancer was jailed today for attempted sedition over plans to protest against China’s political clampdown with a prop coffin.
Koo Sze-yiu, 78, is among the handful of outspoken government critics still remaining in the city after Beijing crushed Hong Kong’s huge and sometimes violent democracy protests nearly five years ago.
Chief magistrate Victor So today sentenced Koo to nine months in prison for “attempted sedition” – the second time the veteran activist was hit with the charge.
Koo was planning to stage a demonstration last December opposing local elections, which excluded pro-democracy candidates, prosecutors earlier told the court.
Chief magistrate Victor So today sentenced Koo to nine months in prison for “attempted sedition” – the second time the veteran activist was hit with the charge.
Koo was planning to stage a demonstration last December opposing local elections, which excluded pro-democracy candidates, prosecutors earlier told the court.
National security police arrested him on Dec 8, hours before the protest was scheduled to take place.
The magistrate ruled on Friday that a prop coffin made for the event by Koo “symbolised death … (and) overthrowing the central government”.
The protest, if held, would have encouraged the public to reject the election results and foster resistance, the magistrate added.
A defiant Koo told the court he wanted to be a “martyr for democracy and human rights” before being led away, according to local media.
The long-time activist has been jailed at least 12 times since 2000.
In a similar case from 2022, Koo was given a nine-month jail sentence for attempted sedition over plans to demonstrate against Beijing’s hosting of the Winter Olympics.
Sedition, a colonial-era offence dating to the days of British rule, lay dormant for decades before Hong Kong authorities revived it in 2020.
It has since been used to target dozens of government critics – in many cases criminalising remarks made on social media.
Hong Kong is also undertaking public consultation on a new national security law, which includes a proposal to widen the scope of “sedition” to protect more Chinese and Hong Kong state institutions.
This homegrown legislation, if passed, would exist on top of a sweeping national security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020 to quell dissent.
As of mid-January, police have arrested 291 people for offences related to national security.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 16, 2024
- Event Description
Trinh Thi Nhung, the wife of Bui Van Thuan, told Project88 that during the Tet holidays she was suddenly summoned to the police station on Feb. 16 without a reason. Once there, they showed her a Facebook account using her name but which had been created only one day earlier; the account contained posts that could potentially be deemed “anti-state propaganda.” She denied it was hers and refused to sign an affidavit. Since that day, the police have allegedly been posting men around her house. She reported that unknown men wearing face masks have also been following her and her young child everywhere. At night, they even allegedly asked her neighbors to shine their lights on her house “all through the night.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to privacy
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: wife of detained HRD threatened with arrest
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Feb 16, 2024
- Event Description
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the killing on 16 February 2024 of Hidyat Lohar, the father of women human rights defenders Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar. The two women human rights defenders have been campaigning ever since for justice in his case and for the state to conduct an effective and impartial inquiry into his assasination. Hidayat Lohar was killed by unidentified men in his home town of Nasirabad, near Larkana City, Sindh Province of Pakistan. Hidayat Lohar, a teacher and dissident, has faced reprisals due to his political views and also linked to the human rights work of his daughters, Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar. The women human rights defenders are the founders of Voice of Missing Persons of Sindh, which campaigns for an end to violations including extra judicial killings and enforced disappearances in Sindh Province. For 16 days following his killing, the police refused to file a First Information Report (FIR), despite repeated requests and campaigns by the family. On 2 March 2024, following an order by the Additional Sessions Judge, Kamber District, the Nasirabad police have registered an FIR in the case but have failed to take any effective steps to trace those responsible. Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar are the founders of the Voice of Missing Persons of Sindh, an organization aimed at supporting victims of enforced diappearences and their families to seek justice. Their human rights work is motivated by their own experience when their father Hidayat Lohar was forcibly disappeared in 2017 and continued following his release in 2019. The women human rights defenders have been active since 2014 supporting other victims and families to seek redress and to end the crime of enforced disappearances in Sindh. On 16 February, Hidayat Lohar was assassinated by two unidentified gunmen who shot him while he was traveling to work. The attack happened very close to the police station in Nasirabad and police have confirmed to the family that they heard the sound of gunfire. However, the police and state authorities have so far failed to take any effective measures to respond to the killing or trace those responsible. For over two weeks following the killing, Nasirabad police refused to register a FIR despite the requests of family members. The two women human rights defenders, Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar, launched a protest campaign seeking justice and calling on the police to take action and register the FIR into the killing of their father. Three days after the killing, they marched peacefully in Nasirabad town calling for justice. Instead of tracing the perpetators, the police appear to have focused their attention on the women human rights defenders and their campaign intimidating protesters and and the family with a heavy police presence and refusing to ascede to demands for justice and accountability. The FIR bearing number 32/24 was only registered by Nasirabad police 16 days later, on 2 March 2024, following an order by the Additional Sessions Judge, Kamber District directing the police to file an FIR and commence inquiry. However, no further action has been taken to date to identify those responsible. Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar have faced repeated reprisals including legal persecution, surveillance, threats and harassment linked to their work. Their father has also been targeted as a result of their work. On 3 April 2023, Hidayat Lohar was taken from his relatives shop in Nasirabad by the Station House Officer (SHO) of Nasirabad police station. When the woman human rights defender Sasui Lohar went to police station inquring about the whereabouts of Hidyat Lohar, police denied having any information about his whereabouts despite witness statements that clearly statethat Hidyat Lohar was taken away by the SHO of Nasirabad Police. Sasui Lohar began a sit-in protest at the police station demanding that her father’s whereabouts be revealed and calling for his release. Around three hours after he was first taken, Hidyat Lohar was returned to his family by the SHO at a location in Larkana city which is around 40 minutes away from Nasirabad town. There was no formal arrest receipt or explanation to the family regarding his abduction or reason for detention by the SHO. Hidyat Lohar informed his daughter that after he was taken away by the SHO, he was blindfolded and handed over to unidentified persons who he believed were intelligence agents who held him at an unknown location and questioned him about his daughters’ human rights work and warned them to stop the campaigns on enforced disapperances. Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar have also faced legal persecution and false labeling by the state including the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD). On 17 January 2022, an FIR was filed by the SHO in Shashar against the two women human rights defenders together with several other human rights defenders accusing them of being anti-national and acting against the interest of the state. This case has since been closed due to lack of evidence. The CTD has falsely accused Sorath Lohar of receiving foreign funds for her organization, allegations the woman human rights defender denies. The abuse of anti-terror mechanisms and false labeling and legal cases against human rights defenders reflects a common pattern of reprisals in Pakistan, including restrictions on reciept of funds or resources for legitimate human rights work. Front Line Defenders condemns the killing of Hidayat Lohar which we believe is a reprisal against the human rights work carried out by his daughters, Sasui Lohar and Sorath Lohar. Pakistani human rights defenders work in an extremely hostile context and there is evidence of state authorities or state supported groups targeting not only human rights defenders but also their families as a form of punishment and to silence their voices. We call on the Pakistan police and state authorities to ensure an effective and independent inquiry that results in the prosecution of those responsible for the killing of Hidayat Lohar. Front Line Defenders stands in solidarity with Sasui Lohar and Sorah Lohar and call on the Pakistan state to ensure their safety, protection and an end to reprisals against the women human rights defenders and their family.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 15, 2024
- Event Description
Four indigenous Kuy residents of M’lou Prey II commune, Chheb district, have been summoned by the Preah Vihear provincial court for questioning on the obstruction of the company’s development, and inciting people to illegally occupy state land.
Last week, three villagers of M’lou Prey II commune were assaulted in a land dispute. The indigenous community is seeking justice from the authority following the assault by the group believed to be sugarcane plantation workers.
Four days after the conflict on February 11, M’lou Prey II community representative, Seun Tha, 31, received the summons issued by the commune police. Tha said he is very disappointed, noting that indigenous people are the victims as they lost their land and survive on low incomes.
In the summons reviewed by CamboJA, four community representatives will be questioned by Preah Vihear court prosecutor on February 27. The summons states that the court will question them for allegedly obstructing the company’s work and for inciting people to illegally occupy state land on January 16, 2024.
The summons did not name the company but people believe that it is the Chinese company which was granted land for development from the government in 2011.
Tha called it an injustice against indigenous peoples, who often suffered abuse by those in power, and the law. He hopes the government will reconsider the plight of indigenous people and that the court would render them justice.
“It is very unfair for indigenous people like us. We just cultivated our land and now we are being issued a summons,” Tha said. “I hope the court will drop the charges against the three of us and other community representatives.”
Nop Vuthy, spokesperson of Preah Vihear province, told CamboJA that the company was suing them, and claimed that the provincial authorities had tried several times to resolve the case out of court. However, the case was beyond the jurisdiction of the provincial authorities, he added.
“We mediated out of court, but now the company sued them. This case is not under the control of the local authorities,” Vuthy said.
Another community member, who is also a Kuy native, Pean Sophat, said they did nothing wrong as the people came to cultivate their land, not the company land.
“We oppose [the summons] because the land that the company is developing is not state land, it is our land which we have been cultivating for a long time,” he added.
The national policy on indigenous peoples’ development in 2009 recognizes the rights of indigenous peoples to land, traditions, culture and customs. The 2001 Land Law recognizes the rights of indigenous communities to their collective use of land.
Although Cambodia has a policy of recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples, there is little protection for their interests. Since 2001, only around five indigenous communities have received collective title deeds.
Preah Vihear provincial court spokesperson, Chum Kaniya could not be reached for comment.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 15, 2024
- Event Description
The Tbong Khmum Appeal Court yesterday suspended a two-year prison sentence given to four Srae Prang Community members, who were accused of intentional damage for blocking a private company from clearing their land.
The four community members are part of group of nine defendants who are alleged to have blocked machinery belonging to Harmony Win Investment Co. Ltd. from clearing their land in 2017 and 2020. They were convicted of intentional damage and sentenced to two years in prison in 2021 by a provincial court. The Tbong Khmum Appeal Court upheld the verdict in 2022, but the Supreme Court sent the case back to the appeal court in August 2023.
On Thursday 15 February 2024, the appeal court upheld the sentences of the four community members and suspended their two-year prison sentences. The community members are Chhork Chhey, Khem Sokcheang, Pum Pich and Veun Ver.
Srae Prang Community in Tbong Khmum has fought a decade-long dispute over their community farmland with Harmony Win Investment, which is a Chinese-owned rubber company. The company has routinely blocked village residents’ access to their farmland and cleared it, leading to frequent protests from community members.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Land rights, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 14, 2024
- Event Description
About the Human Rights Defender: Mr. Udayram (27) s/o Hawa Singh is a video journalist from Hisar district in Haryana, who works with Janchowk web portal since the last several years. He often covers issues of farmers and labourers of Haryana’s rural areas.
Date of Incident: February 14, 2024 Place of Incident: Khanauri border, Data Singhwala village, tehsil Narwana, Disrict Jind, Haryana. Details of the Incident: Mr. Udayram has been covering the ongoing farmers protest in Haryana for the web portal Jan Chowk. On February 14, 2024, at about 2:30 PM, the Deputy Superintendent of Police of Jind invited the farmer leaders for discussions. Mr. Udayram also went to cover the story, accompanying the farmers who went to meet the SP. Mr. Udayram was being driven in a farmer leader’s car in a 8 car convoy to Khanauri border which had about 30 farmers. The convoy was escorted by a police jeep and taken to the site 300 meters ahead where the DSP was to meet members of the delegation. While the discussions were on, all of sudden police started vandalizing vehicles. The car in which Mr. Udayram was travelling was attacked by Para military force members, first they broke the glass then used sticks to damage the bodies of the vehicles. They were also carrying drilling machine with which they damaged the tyres of vehicles. When Mr. Udayram tried to stop the policemen vandalising the cars they threatened him that they will make holes in HRD’s body too with the drilling machine. When this delegation returned, they sat in a nearby house and complained about the attack to the DSP. However he denied that this act could be done by the police officials. Mr. Udayram told DSP that he has a video clip of police officials damaging the vehicles, then the police officials present there threatened him with a beating in front of DSP.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 14, 2024
- Event Description
Chea Chan, union leader at the Wing Star Shoes factory, who was just elected into that post, was caught and charged with “conspiracy to commit theft” for an incident that allegedly happened two years ago.
He is said not to be involved in the case. Activists assert that his detention is meant to “pressure” union members to disband the independent union in the factory.
Prior to Chan’s arrest, an election for union board members was held in the factory where he and nine others were voted in, according to a statement by the Cambodian Alliance of Trade Union (CATU).
After Chan informed Wing Star Shoes about forming a union, the company sent warnings to him and the other union leaders, persuading them to cancel the union, but they refused to comply.
On February 14, Chan was detained at work by a group of Kampong Speu provincial police who allegedly failed to produce a summons or any proof to support the arrest.
Yang Sophorn, president of CATU, said the arrest of the union leader was a serious violation of the union rights, along with the absence of evidence or a summons.
“The company conspired with the police and called Chan to the stockroom saying someone wanted to meet him before five policemen caught him. They arrested him without a summons,” said Sophorn.
She said the factory allegedly sued him for conspiring to steal but the charge was allegedly “concocted with the police” as Chan and the others do not know anything about the two-year-old theft at the factory.
The company was not keen on an independent union, hence the reason they discouraged workers from starting one, she added.
“Yesterday, the court charged Chan for conspiring to steal, [an incident] which happened two years ago, not involving Chan. This is the real reason why the company wants to discourage my union leader,” said Sophorn.
In fact, two representatives from Wing Star Shoes met CATU to discuss the union issue as they failed to convince Chan to abort its setting up. “They gave us money to change his mind. When we refused to accept their request, they detained my union leader instead.”
Chan’s wife, Chhay Chanra, 35, told CamboJA that arresting and charging her husband was unfair because her husband did not commit any crime.
“They arrested my husband without a summons, which is a violation of workers’ and union rights. He worked there for almost 10 years. Why did they do that,” she asked.
She is also concerned about her family as they have three children and Chan is the sole breadwinner.
“This is unacceptable. I want the company to withdraw the lawsuit and the court to release him as soon as possible,” said Chanra.
Pheng Siphoan, Chief of Administrative Secretariat and Spokesman of Kampong Speu Provincial Court, said Chan has been sent to Kampong Speu provincial prison after being charged under Articles 29, 353 and 356 of the Penal Code.
According to Article 356 of the Penal Code, theft is punishable by six months to three years in prison and a fine of one million to six million riels.
“The court questioned him on February 17 and sent him to prison yesterday [Sunday],” he told CamboJA.
When asked why the court only questioned Chan two years after the alleged theft, Siphoan replied, “this is the court procedure”.
The Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training 2023 annual report stressed that factories should respect the Labor Law and resolve labor conflicts where more than 8,000 cases have been recorded.
Chek Borin, director of the Kampong Speu provincial Department of Labor, said if Chan’s case is related to the violation of worker’s rights, his department will intervene. However, the company sued Chan under the criminal law, so he is not able to get involved.
“Had he [Chan] informed us regarding a labor case, we would have intervened but this is related to a criminal case,” said Borin.
The ministry report also noted that the government is open and encourages the right to organization and unions which is in accordance with the Labor Law and international labor standards.
In 2022, a report by Human Rights Watch mentioned that Cambodia does not have a designated labor court despite the Cambodian labor law stipulating the need for one. Owing to that, the Arbitration Council is the only body tasked to handle alternative dispute resolution for labor-related issues.
Meanwhile, CATU’s Sophorn raised concerns about union rights being trampled on a daily basis. “I can say the condition of union rights now is quite bad, even though we have special protection under the labor law but in reality it is the opposite. Our employees don’t even have the right to negotiate [with factory owners],” she lamented.
CamboJA reached out to Wing Star Shoes for comment via telephone, using a number provided on the company website but the person who picked up said he no longer works with the company.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
The director and three constitutional law experts featured in the viral documentary movie, Dirty Vote, were reported to the National Police by the Indonesian Santri Communication Forum (Foksi) on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
Dirty Vote is a documentary film directed by Dandhy Laksono that exposes alleged systematic election fraud by President Joko Widodo or Jokowi’s administration and is explained by three constitutional law experts, namely Zainal Arifin Mochtar, Feri Amsari, Bivitri Susanti
“We tried to file a report. We filed it yesterday but we lacked documents. Today, we are completing the documents,” Foksi chairman M. Natsir Sahib told Tempo in a text on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
Natsir believed that the long-form movie had harmed one of the pairs of presidential and vice presidential candidates contesting in the election. He accused the four people of committing election violations, especially since the film was released during the cooling-off period before voting day on Feb. 14.
“Releasing a film about election fraud during the cooling-off period in order to create an uproar and corner one of the presidential candidate pairs is against the Election Law,” he stressed.
To back up his accusation, Natsir alluded to the involvement of Zainal, Feri, and Bivitri in the legal reform team at the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs under the leadership of Mahfud MD, who is currently running for vice president with Ganjar Pranowo.
“These academics have destroyed the democratic order and fulfilled the elements of malicious conspiracy to create issues that cannot be accounted for, resulting in slander and false data being distributed to the public,” he reiterated.
Natsir argued that the director and the three academics had violated Article 287 paragraph (5) of Law No. 7 of 2017 concerning elections. He also urged the National Police Criminal Investigation Unit to handle the case professionally. “Since it was published during the cooling-off period, it is a serious violation and tendentious against one of the candidates,” he concluded.
- Impact of Event
- 4
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Academic, Artist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
A Kyrgyz court on February 15 confined independent journalist Ali Ergeshev to house arrest until at least March 13 on a hooliganism charge. Ergeshev was detained two days earlier at the Manas airport in Bishkek amid an ongoing crackdown on independent media in the country that once had the most vibrant media space across the region. Last month, 11 former and current reporters of the Temirov Live investigative group were arrested on a charge of "calling for disobedience and mass riots" over the group's reporting. Other Kyrgyz media and reporters have been under pressure in recent months.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), a legal firm which provides pro-bono representation for pro-democracy activists and protesters, has been threatened with violence after they provided legal support to two activists arrested on several charges, including sedition, for allegedly honking their car horn at and blocking a royal motorcade.
TLHR said today (14 February) that, at around 14.30, they received an anonymous phone call to their office from an middle-aged man who demanded the contact information for a lawyer representing Tantawan Tuatulanon and Nutanon Chaimahabut. The pair were arrested yesterday (13 February) on charges of sedition, violation of the Computer Crimes Act, causing a public annoyance and are now detained.
The man also threatened that he would lead his group in an armed raid on TLHR’s office.
A TLHR information officer told Prachatai that their office has been receiving threatening phone calls from the same number since yesterday (13 February) and that the caller(s) were unhappy that they were helping Tantawan and Nutanon file post bail.
Formed in the days after the May 2014 military coup, when the military was summoning and arresting dissidents and trying civilians in military courts, TLHR has provided pro-sbono legal representation for activists and members of the public prosecuted for political expression and charged under laws which violate basic civil and political rights, including the Computer-Related Crime Act, the Public Assembly Act, the royal defamation law, and the sedition law.
They have also documented and monitored human rights violations in the country since the coup. Their reports are published on their website and social media accounts as news articles, reports, legal opinions, and public statements to raise public awareness about these violations.
Update: TLHR said today (15 February) that they were visited by a man wearing a purple shirt who came to their office without prior appointment. The man claimed to be a retired civil servant who had attended an administrative lawyer workshop and came from Phitsanulok to pick up a document.
TLHR's information officer said the man could not name the specific document he needed, and was demanding that to be inside the office. When told to contact TLHR through the normal channel, the man demanded to be told the name of any TLHR officer he can contact.
The information officer said that the man is not being represented by any of TLHR's lawyers. He also spent 15 minutes demanding the document before leaving. However, TLHR could not confirm whether was was the same person who has been calling to threaten them.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Surveillance
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Lawyer, NGO
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
Indian police have used tear gas and water cannon for a second day to stop farmers demanding minimum crop prices from marching on the capital Delhi.
The capital is ringed by razor wire, cement blocks and fencing on three sides to block their entry.
Mostly from Punjab state, the farmers are still 200km (125 miles) from Delhi - thousands of security forces are deployed to block their way.
Farmers say the government broke its word after protests two years ago.
In 2020, farmers blockaded national highways around the capital - their year-long protest was a major challenge and forced the authorities to roll back controversial agriculture reforms, but farmers say other demands have not been met. The government has invited farm leaders to hold talks.
The new protests come months before general elections in which the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of PM Narendra Modi is seeking a third consecutive term.
Video footage on Wednesday morning showed thousands of riot police and paramilitary troops deployed along Delhi borders to keep the protesters away.
Farmers allege that plastic and rubber bullets had been used against them, and they criticised the media, saying a perception was being created that farmers were "terrorists" or aligned with opposition parties.
"We have nothing to do with anyone else," farm leader Sarwan Singh Pandher told reporters. "Our demands have been the same from the very beginning."
At the Shambhu border point between Haryana and Punjab states north of Delhi, farmers have been distributing protective eyewear to protesters facing police tear gas shells.
Earlier, Mr Pandher told ANI news agency that there were approximately 10,000 people at the Shambhu border. Calling the attack on the farmers "shameful", he said, "we are farmers and labourers of the country and we do not want any fight".
Mr Pandher appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi "to give us a law for MSP".
Minimum support price (MSP) is a guaranteed price that allows farmers to sell most of their produce at government-controlled wholesale markets, or mandis. The farmers are also demanding that the government fulfil its promise of doubling their income, and withdraw court cases filed against farmers during the previous protest.
Farm leaders say at least a dozen farmers have been detained by the police since Tuesday, the day the protest march began after two rounds of talks between farm unions and federal ministers failed to break the deadlock.
On Wednesday, federal minister Anurag Thakur asked farmers to resume talks. "When we have met most of your [farmers'] demands, a solution can be found on the rest through discussions," he told news channel NDTV.
Farm leaders said they were open to continuing talks after hearing about the offer through media. "Our priority is that the talks are held in Chandigarh or anywhere near the protest site," said one of their leaders, Jagjit Singh Dallewal.
More than 200 unions are participating in the march and the farmers aim to reach the capital after crossing the state of Haryana.
On Tuesday, images from the city of Ambala, 200km north of the capital, showed thick clouds of tear gas. At Shambhu, clashes broke out between police and protesters as they tried to press past the barricades. Police dropped tear gas on the crowd using drones.
Several protesters were injured. Security personnel also suffered injuries from stones thrown at them by protesters.
Disruption was reported across Delhi as authorities diverted traffic and blocked roads.
The protesters have received some support from the Punjab and Haryana High Court which has said that as citizens of the country, the farmers had the "right to move freely".
India's opposition leaders have also extended support to them and condemned the government's attempt to stop them from reaching Delhi.
Congress party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge said on Tuesday that they would enact a law to guarantee minimum price for the farmers if the party was voted to power in the elections.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
“The arbitrary arrests and unjust detention of Filipinos under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. regime show that the same forms of injustice that the Filipino people rose up against 38 years ago continue,” said KARAPATAN Secretary General Cristina Palabay, as the group condemned the unjust arrests and detention of persons ahead of the People Power 1 commemoration.
KARAPATAN condemned the arbitrary arrest of Pertinisa Charita, 55, a farmer, who was with her children to visit her husband, detained sugarcane worker unionist Leon Charita, in San Carlos City District Jail, San Carlos, Negros Occidental. It was Leon’s birthday when Pertinisa and her children visited him on February 13.
During the search of Pertinisa and her children’s belongings and the items they brought for Leon, a jail officer of the San Carlos City District Jail opened Pertinisa’s bag and showed a caliber .22 pistol in his hand, implying that the gun was found inside Pertinisa’s bag. Jail officers immediately apprehended Pertinisa and brought her to PNP San Carlos City station. She remains under police custody as of this writing.
“It is highly improbable that an ordinary person will bring a firearm to jail, knowing his or her belongings will be searched. It is appalling that they did this to a wife of a political prisoner, who is already suffering in jail due to planted evidence. We condemn how the state has victimized the Charita family twice over, with Pertinisa actively calling for her husband’s freedom,” said Palabay.
Pertinisa was among those who met UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression Irene Khan in her Visayas visit in January to provide information on the case of her husband.
Leon was the auditor of the National Federation of Sugar Workers when he was arrested on September 18, 2019, along with seven other activists while they were preparing and inviting people to join the commemoration activity on the Escalante massacre. Elements of the 79th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army, Escalante City PNP, and 3rd Platoon, 1st Negros Occidental Provincial Mobile Force Company (NOCPMFC), arbitrarily arrested Leon and his colleagues and planted various firearms and explosives.
KARAPATAN also deplored the arrest and continued detention of filmmaker and director Jade Castro, who was arrested along with three others in Mulanay, Quezon on February 1 for allegedly burning a modernized jeepney the night before. The human rights group also decried the harassment of radio commentator and human rights activist Vince Casilihan by men who introduced themselves as soldiers on February 8.
“We stand with Castro’s fellow artists and colleagues that they are innocent, and they are victims of warrantless arrests. We support Casilihan’s efforts to expose the various forms of harassment against journalists like him in the Bicol region. Castro and his companions should be released soon, while State forces should keep their hands off Casilihan and other press freedom advocates. These incidents in the heels of UN Special Rapporteur Khan’s investigation on the state of freedom of expression and opinion in the Philippines further reaffirm the sordid human rights situation in the Philippines,” Palabay said.
As KARAPATAN prepares to join commemoration activities on the 38th year after the People Power 1 uprising, Palabay said they will also continue to call for the release of the 800 political prisoners in the country.
“There is no holiday for the Marcos Jr. regime in employing the martial law practice of warrantless arrests, trumped up charges and unjust detention. In the upcoming People Power anniversary commemoration, we shall continue to demand for the release of political prisoners, and in holding the Marcos Jr. regime accountable for the spate of rights violations under its watch. Justice and genuine freedom can only be attained with people’s action. Let us live up to the lessons of People Power,” Palabay ended.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 13, 2024
- Event Description
A total of 30 students representing various campuses carried out a symbolic action while submitting the analysis they made at the Constitutional Court Building (MK), Tuesday (13/2).
Dozens of students began gathering at 15.00 WIB at the gathering point. 15 minutes later they then moved to the back of the Constitutional Court Building.
“At 15.30 a group of unknown people prohibited the students from moving to the back of the Constitutional Court Building. They threatened to forcibly disperse, if students continued to protest,” said one of the protesters, Tegar Afriansyah in his statement.
However, at around 16:00 WIB, students continued to move from the gathering point towards the back of the Constitutional Court Building. Again, a group of unknown people followed and tried to provoke the students.
30 minutes later, students carried out symbolic actions and expressed their opinions behind the Constitutional Court Building. There, a number of police officers were already on guard.
“At 16.45 a group of people forcibly dispersed the student protest by committing violence such as pulling, pushing, grabbing microphones and hitting,” said Tegar.
“The unknown group also damaged the protest tools regarding dynastic politics delivered by students. Then the police intervened,” he continued.
Nevertheless, dozens of students continued their protest at 17.00 WIB, while waiting for representatives from the Constitutional Court to meet them. Again, the protest continued to be disturbed by a group of unknown people.
Until finally, at around 17.30 WIB, representatives from the Constitutional Court met the students and accepted the analysis submitted. Afterward, the students moved back to the gathering point.
However, it turned out that the group of unknown people continued to follow and pursue them. Until finally, the unknown group began to commit acts of violence against the students.
“The group of people committed violence by pulling, pushing, grabbing and hitting students who were preparing to go home on the motorcycle yard. The police allowed this. More than ten people were victims of pushing, pulling and other violence,” said Tegar.
At around 18.00 WIB, dozens of students then dispersed to save themselves.
When confirmed, Central Jakarta Metro Police Chief Kombes Susatyo Purnomo Condro denied any knowledge of the beatings or violence.
“Nothing, (the protest) has finished in an orderly manner,” said Susatyo.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 12, 2024
- Event Description
Prison authorities have refused to sell jailed Vietnamese prisoner of conscience Tran Huynh Duy Thuc food from the facility’s canteen, a week after he voluntarily ended a hunger strike, members of his family said Wednesday.
Convicted in 2010 on charges of plotting to overthrow the government, Thuc is serving a 16-year sentence for writing online articles criticizing Vietnam’s one-party communist state.
Thuc is now in the final year of his sentence, counting the time of his detention in 2009, and is in poor health. He has staged other hunger strikes in the past to protest conditions at Prison No. 6 in Nghe An province. He began his latest hunger strike on Jan. 27.
In Vietnam, prisoners are fed basic prison food, but can also buy higher quality food from the canteen, and inmates are allowed to receive non-perishable food from their families. But it’s not unusual for jail authorities to deprive political prisoners of canteen food, hot water, medicine and outside health care as a means of further punishment.
Thuc ended his hunger strike on Feb. 2 after canteen workers finally sold him something to eat. But a week later, they again refused to sell him food, saying that he had exceeded the monthly limit for purchases, even though he had not bought enough to meet his dietary needs, his relatives told Radio Free Asia, two days after a prison visit on Feb. 12.
Canteen workers said Thuc purchases exceeded the monthly limit of 1.7 million dong (US$70), and he could only buy more food beginning in March, according to his family.
Thuc has only one package of instant noodles and about 8 kilograms (18 pounds) of other food his relatives gave him on Monday.
Tran Huynh Duy Tan, Thuc’s younger brother, said the family was happy when Thuc ended his hunger strike, but now they are worried about the possibility that he will resume it. They also expressed concern that the food they gave him will only last a few days.
“The family is very worried that he will continue to not have enough food,” Tan said. “He said he would continue to protest by going on another hunger strike if the prison continued to mistreat him, as it is doing now.”
RFA was unable to reach prison officials for comment.
During his recent hunger strike, Thuc became exhausted and lost consciousness, his family said. He also complained of being constantly cold, although he had not complained previously about the winter weather in Nghe An.
Thuc’s family called on Vietnamese authorities as well as human rights organizations and the governments of democratic countries to pressure the prison to stop treating Thuc harshly.
Prison authorities have continued to restrict access to hot water for Thuc and his cellmate, fellow political prisoner Dang Dinh Bach, Thuc’s relatives said.
Bach, a lawyer and the director of the environmental group that had been campaigning to reduce Vietnam’s reliance on coal, was arrested in July 2021 and sentenced to five years for “tax evasion.”
When the warden said Thuc could only exchange instant noodles for boiling water because the amount of water was limited, Thuc refused, his family said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to food, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 12, 2024
- Event Description
Thai authorities should drop all charges pending against journalist Nutthaphol Meksobhon and photographer Natthapon Phanphongsanon and stop harassing the press for reporting on issues related to the nation’s monarchy, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Wednesday.
Nutthaphol, a reporter with the local independent Prachatai news website, and Natthapon, a freelance photographer, were arrested and charged on Monday by the Royal Palace Police Station with collaborating in vandalizing a sacred historical site, according to multiple press reports.
The charges stem from their reporting in March 2023 that an activist spray-painted graffiti on the outside wall of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in the capital Bangkok’s Grand Palace complex, those sources said.
The journalists were released on 35,000 baht (US$980) bail on Tuesday after being detained overnight. Charges under the Cleanliness Act and Ancient Monuments Act combined carry a maximum seven-year prison sentence and 700,000 baht fine (US$19,600), those sources said.
Several reporters were at the scene of the incident, according to reports, and it is unclear why Nutthaphol and Natthapon were singled out.
“Nutthaphol Meksobhon and Natthapon Phanphongsanon should not be threatened with lengthy jail sentences for merely doing their jobs as journalists in reporting on a social activist’s vandalism,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “If Thailand wants to be taken seriously as a democracy, it should start acting like one by allowing the press to do its job without harassment or fear of arbitrary reprisal.”
The activist spray-painted an anarchist symbol and a crossed-out number 112 on the wall, in reference to Article 112 in Thailand’s Criminal Code, which provides for up to 15-year prison sentences for anyone found guilty of insulting the king, queen, heir apparent, and regent. Mass protests in 2020 and 2021 and the opposition Move Forward Party have called for reforms to the so-called lèse majesté law.
Prachatai is known for its consistent reporting on royal affairs, including on activists and others who are charged and jailed under Article 112.
Prachatai editor-in-chief Tewarit Maneechai was quoted by news agencies as saying that the arrests were “an act of intimidation” that “created fear about news coverage of sensitive issues.” He said the reporters were unaware of the charges against them prior to their arrests.
Thailand’s Royal Police Headquarters did not immediately reply to CPJ’s emailed request for comment on the charges.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Feb 12, 2024
- Event Description
Kazakhstan's Culture and Information Ministry said it has blocked the Selftanu.kz website, which focuses on LGBT relations. The ministry said the move was made "to protect children's rights" while taking into account "the culture and traditions of Kazakhstan’s society and culture." Although homosexual relations were decriminalized in Kazakhstan in the 1990s, the European Parliament noted in 2021 that LGBT citizens in the country are still discriminated against and that members of that community routinely face violence or harassment in the oil-rich Central Asian nation.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Censorship, Online Attack and Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Internet freedom, Freedom of expression Online, SOGI rights
- HRD
- SOGI rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 12, 2024
- Event Description
Two activists have been denied bail after they were arrested on several charges, including sedition, for allegedly honking at and blocking a royal motorcade.
Tantawan Tuatulanon and Nutanon “Frank” Chaimahabut were arrested yesterday (13 February) on charges of sedition, violation of the Computer Crimes Act, and causing a public annoyance.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said that the police accused them of honking at and trying to cut off a royal motorcade for Princess Sirindhorn, the King’s younger sister, as well as for responding rudely to police officers speaking with them about their manner of driving.
Nutanon was also charged with insulting an officer and repeatedly using the vehicle’s horn without proper reason.
The police charged them with sedition after Tantawan posted a video clip from her dashcam, which the police claim caused conflict in the society. The video clip was posted publicly on Tantawan’s Facebook profile which has over 37,000 followers and people were commenting on it, some siding with her and some expressing disagreement.
In a Facebook post on 11 February, Tantawan said that she did not block or cut off the motorcade. She also said she did not know that there was going to be a motorcade. She was on the way back from a funeral and admitted that she was speeding because she was in a hurry.
The dashcam footage shows the vehicle stuck in traffic, and that the horn was sounded when it moves to the front of the line and the lane was blocked by a police vehicle. The footage also shows the vehicle stuck behind another police vehicle while at the exit from the expressway, and a police officer was seen approaching the vehicle before Tantawan was heard arguing.
During Tantawan and Nutanon's bail hearing, an officer from Din Daeng Police Station testified that the vehicle Tantawan and Nutanon were in was only speeding after the royal motorcade had passed and traffic had resumed. It also did not cut in front of the royal motorcade since it could not get past the final vehicle in the motorcade.
TLHR said that Tantawan and Frank received a summons to hear the charge of causing a public annoyance on 12 February, but asked for a postponement because they had class and work. However, the police insisted on having them meet the inquiry officer on the morning of 12 February, claiming that the officer was not free in the afternoon. They asked to postpone the appointment to 20 February. Their lawyer delivered the request to the police on 12 February, but an arrest warrant was issued for them nonetheless.
Tantawan and Nutanon denied all charges. As they refused to sign any document or to be fingerprinted, they were charged with refusing to follow an officer’s order.
The two activists were arrested in front of the Ratchadapisek Criminal Court, where they had been since 9.00. They were waiting to hear the outcome of a bail request for two reporters who were arrested for covering an incident in March 2023 when an activist sprayed graffiti onto a wall at the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
They were initially brought to Din Daeng Police Station. The police later told their lawyer that the two activists would be separated and Tantawan was to be detained at Chalongkrung Police Station. When Tantawan refused and insisted on being detained with Nutanon at Din Daeng Police Station, the police had 4 women crowd control officers carry her to a detention truck. A lawyer who followed her to Chalongkrung Police Station found that she had several bruises from being forced into and out of the truck.
The Criminal Court today (14 February) ordered Tantawan and Nutanon detained for 12 days so that they could not tamper with evidence. They were subsequently denied bail on the grounds that the charges against them carry a high penalty, and that they were likely to cause further disorder in society and disrupt the investigation.
TLHR said that the inquiry officer at Din Daeng Police Station testified during the bail hearing that he does not know which other eyewitness he has to interview, and that the two activists were also unlikely to know these witnesses.
The Dusit Municipal Court previously refused to issue an arrest warrant for the pair because of the sudden nature of the request. Although they were initially charged with a misdemeanour, the inquiry officers decided that they should also be charged with sedition and requested an arrest warrant from the Criminal Court instead.
Tantawan and Nutanon are now being detained at the Women Central Correctional Institution and the Bangkok Remand Prison, respectively. After they were brought to prison, other activists and protesters staged a demonstration in front of the prison entrance to demand their release.
They have announced in a letter that, in protest of their detention, they will be going on a dry hunger strike and will not be filing for bail. They called for a reform of the justice system, an end to the detention of dissidents, and for Thailand to be rejected when it runs for a seat in the UN Human Rights Council.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 12, 2024
- Event Description
A Tibetan singer whose song openly expressed anguish of Tibetans under Chinese rule during a new year music concert was detained by police three months ago.
Tibet Watch has learned that the police authorities of Khyungchu County have been holding Gegjom Dorjee under arbitrary detention since 12 February 2024 – the third day of Losar or Tibetan new year – after he was summoned to report at the county police station.
His family’s attempts to seek further information have only been met with a warning from the police, according to a source, who shared that the police told the family: “Dorjee has serious political thoughts and he must be educated to change his thoughts.”
Gegjom performed Sad Song of Whirled Tears (སྐྱོ་གླུ་མཆི་མ་དགུ་འཁྱིལ།) with the Tibetan stringed lute called Dranyen at a Tibetan new year concert, nearly a month before his detention on 15 January 2024. In a video recording of his performance, the audience can be heard giving him enthusiastic applause.
The song begins with a direct reference to the absence of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Tibet, who is mentioned as the Gyalwa – referring to the widely used honorific Tibetan term Gyalwa Rinpoche, the Precious Triumphant One. The collective tragedy of Tibetans is later represented as the experience of the “red-faced” ones – a symbolic metaphor that the Tibetans have identified themselves with since ancient times.
Singing was his passion since childhood, and he is known to have participated in numerous other Tibetan concerts in the past. Gegjom, now in his early thirties, was born in a nomadic family in Tsoeru Village (གཙོས་རུ་སྡེ་བ) in Camp II of Washul Mepa Township (ཝ་ཤུལ་རྨེ་བའི་སྦྲ་ཆེན་ཡུལ་ཚོ།) in Khungchu County (ཁྱུང་མཆུ་རྫོང་།), Ngaba autonomous prefecture of Sichuan province.
Tibet Watch has provided Free Tibet with a translation of Sad Song Of Whirled Tears:
༧རྒྱལ་བ་མེད་པའི་རྒྱལ་ཁམས་འདི་ན།
In this land without the Gyalwa,
མགོ་ཁྲིད་ཡོད་རུང་རྫུན་མ་རེད་འདུག
leaders are here but fake ones.
ཁ་ཕྱོགས་མེད་པའི་བོད་འབངས་འདི་ཚོ།
Tibetans lost without direction,
སྨུག་ལུང་ཁྲོད་ཀྱི་ཡུ་མོ་བཞིན་རེད།
are like a doe in the midst of fog.
དྲང་བདེན་མེད་པའི་ས་ཆ་འདི་ན།
In this place without truth,
སྲིད་ཇུས་ཉི་མ་གཟའ་ཡིས་བཟུང་སོང་།
light of the land is eclipsed.
འདྲ་མཉམ་མིན་པའི་གདོང་དམར་བ་འདི།
The red-faced with no equality,
མི་ཆེན་རྐང་འོག་གྲོག་མ་བཞིན་རེད།
are like ants beneath boots of the mighty.
གཅར་རྡུང་མང་པའི་ཡུལ་གྲུ་འདི་ན།
In this land of torture and beatings,
ཞི་བདེ་སྒྲོན་མེ་སྟོང་གཏམ་རེད་སོང་།
the flame of peace is empty talk
རང་དབང་མེད་པའི་བོད་པ་ངེད་ཚོ།
We, the Tibetans without freedom
སྨྱུག་གཟེབ་ནང་གི་བྱེའུ་ཆུང་བཞིན་རེད།
are like a small bird in a cage.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Artist, Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 11, 2024
- Event Description
Kuy indigenous community in Bos Village and Preus Ka’ak Village, M’lou Prey II Commune, Chheb District in Preah Vihear Province urge the authorities to help them seek justice after being allegedly assaulted by a group of men. The villagers suspect they are sugarcane plantation workers who destroyed their farmland.
Community representative, Pean Sophat, told CamboJA that on February 11, 2024, villagers came together to stop three tractors known to belong to local Chheang Kong Nov from plowing the area which the villagers had long cultivated.
Sophat said when they arrived at construction site 11 to meet Kong Nov, his people allegedly closed the gate and assaulted the villagers. Three villagers were injured.
Another villager, Soeun Tha, a 30-year-old indigenous man, said Kong Nov “always” plows people’s land, so this was not the first time. Hence, the reason behind the villagers’ decision to stop the activity and get answers. Instead, Kong Nov’s team used violence on the villagers.
“When we arrived at the site, he ordered his team to close the door and use violence against us. He grabbed another villager’s collar and also beat three people,” Tha recounted.
According to Tha, the government allocated the land that was cultivated by the villagers to a Chinese firm in 2011. When the Chinese company collapsed in 2019, the locals continued to cultivate on the land again, they are planting potatoes and rice. But recently, a group of men with Kong Nov started plowing the land to plant potatoes and abused villagers.
“It is wrong and unfair, and the authorities in the province are not making any effort to help us,” said Tha.
In January, five Chinese companies signed 50-year lease contracts over the state land. The Cambodia-registered companies plan to operate sugarcane plantations and other agro-industrial crops on the land measuring 20,179 hectares in total.
However, Tha said those who came did not have a permit or a letter to prove that they had permission to clear the land.
The villagers are not interested in opposing the company, he added. “We just want to negotiate a solution because we have been farming on the land for a long time.”
Chief of M’lou Prey II commune Kan Sovankea told CamboJA that the local authority was aware of the matter, adding that it would be transferred to the district authority for intervention. He could not resolve the issue as it is “beyond his capacity”.
He explained that the people from his commune have been farming on the company’s land known as Hengfu group although the latter stopped planting in 2019. But, he did not know the exact number of families who had been doing that.
“Now I mediate for them [with Kong Nov]. In fact, the villagers have planted crops on the company land and want to continue to do more,” said Sovankea.
The villagers have filed a police report following the attack, said 37-year-old Nab Noeun, adding that they asked the commune authorities to help secure justice for those with land but are now “disturbed by unidentified people”.
“I have filed a complaint but I don’t know the outcome yet. It is unfair because our land has been used for a long time. There are plants there but they have come to plow and destroy our crops,” she added.
While the villagers do not know who the person was, she believed that there must be a “powerful person” behind the attack, as they dared to harm them.
“Maybe there was someone behind him. If not, he would never have dared to do so and the authorities are still silent,” she said.
There are 14 ethnic groups and 155 indigenous communities in Cambodia, according to a study on the demographic and socioeconomic state of indigenous peoples in the country published in 2021 by the Ministry of Planning and the Ministry of Rural Development.
A new code of environment and natural resources was enacted by the National Assembly in June 2023.
Another resident, Khat Sisophan, hoped that the government would stop giving away land used by the people to plant their crops to private companies, while asking them to withdraw the land from Rui Feng chinese sugarcane company.
He said villagers need farmlands to support their families as their livelihoods are in dire condition and they are in debt.
“The people of this village are facing difficulties and aren’t happy nowadays. It is not fair [that land is being privatized for companies].
“I want to see the new government reform the law and respect human rights, including those who live in remote areas, like us. Without farmlands, we would not be able to live comfortably,” Sisophan said.
Deputy Provincial Governor of Preah Vihear Province Nop Vuthy urged people to file a complaint with the authorities with regards to the violence. That is, “as long as they have evidence,” Vuthy told CamboJA.
He said Preah Vihear provincial authorities made a contract with villagers to “make them understand” that the land had been given to private companies.
The contract also mentioned that they should “stop planting on the investment land” but, “every year and every season”, villagers continue to grow crops on the land.
“We have given it to Chinese companies,” Vuthy said. “[Villagers] always say [it’s their land]. Obviously it’s not like that. The land is already registered as a state land.
“Now, we have a state land commission. We’re investigating the history of the land, whether they really own the land and if they have adequate documents. The provincial authority will take action accordingly.”
According to Article 25 of the Land Law, indigenous community land consists of lands where communities have established settlements and engaged in traditional agriculture. The lands are not only those regularly cultivated, but also those which are reserved for seasonal farming and are recognized by the administrative authorities.
Poek Sophorn, executive director of Ponlok Khmer, said the authorities should help the indigenous people acquire justice and calm the situation as they have been cultivating the land for a long time.
Indigenous communities are protected by the law and possess the right to access land.
“But the authorities don’t seem to care much about the people’s rights and they might lose their right to the land.
“Why not help them to register their land? At least help them secure land ownership for private use, this would be fairer,” said Sophorn.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Land rights, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 10, 2024
- Event Description
Nepal police arrested journalists Pushkar Bhatta and Aishwarya Kunwar for their news reporting on February 10 in Kanchanpur. Kanchanpur lies in Sudurpaschim Province of Nepal.
Reporter Bhatta is associated with Mountain Television and Kunwar is reporter at Avash Kunj daily.
Freedom Forum’s representative for the province, Min Bam said that reporters duo were arrested for reporting on mismanagement in the District Police Office, Kanchanpur. “News about mismanagement at DPO were published in local media earlier,” Bam added.
Freedom Forum also talked to the Superintendant of Police Kamal Thapa about the case. SP Thapa however informed FF that police arrested the reporters under Cybercrime charge citing Electronic Transaction Act 2007 as per the order from District Court. He added that the arrest warrant was issued after a female victim’s complaint. “As per complaint, news and social media posts of the reporters duo have defamed her personally and professionally. Police is further investigating the case,” he said.
Representative Bam also shared with FF that he was working in close coordination with the fellow journalists and National Human Rights Office, Dhangadhi to release the reporters.
FF is closely monitoring the case. Arrest of the reporters for their reporting is sheer violation of press freedom. Further, arresting them under cybercrime charge for their social media post is the misuse of ETA 2007. Such misuse of ETA by the complainants and subsequent action by the security authority against journalists and citizens is a worrying trend in Nepal.
In case of defamation, the victim can approach different way rather than invoking ETA.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 10, 2024
- Event Description
Members of ultra-royalist groups attacked activists and citizen journalists during a gathering in the Siam shopping district on Saturday (10 February), injuring 10 activists, 2 citizen journalists, and another person observing the gathering.
The incident took place at the exit from the Siam BTS station next to Siam Paragon shopping mall, while activist Tantawan Tuatulanon was reading a statement about a video clip released on 4 February, which showed an argument with a police officer blocking the road during a royal motorcade.
As she was reading out her statement, members of several ultra-royalist groups climbed over metal fences that Siam Paragon employees had placed to block the BTS station exit and attacked the activists. Police officers stationed in the area attempted to defuse the situation by removing the activists from the scene. Initially, they were taken inside the BTS station, before being taken in a police van to the nearby Pathumwan Police Station.
10 activists were injured, and have decided to press charges against their attackers. Napatsorn Boonree, a regular protest-goer who was observing the gathering, was also injured.
Citizen journalists Paradorn Ketphuak and Chen Chiwobancha were also attacked while livestreaming the incident. Paradorn said objects were thrown at them while they were walking around the area to see whether any activist was still around. He was then attacked by two royalist group members while at the Siam BTS station. He said that he was slapped in the face, breaking his glasses, and that one also hit his phone, knocking it to the ground.
Paradorn said that Wasan Tongmontho, leader of the Blue Blood Warriors group, pushed him to the ground and held him down with his knees. Paradorn called for help from nearby police officers who then took him away from the police station.
Paradorn is pressing charges against his attackers for assault and destruction of property. He said that members of the ultra-royalist group the People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy previously attacked him while he was livestreaming at a protest in front of the Criminal Court, but there has been no progress in the complaint he filed against them.
Meanwhile, Chen said he was standing behind the ticket gate at the BTS station. Anon Klinkaew, leader of the People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy, threw a bottle at him and climbed over the ticket gate. Chen said that an officer stopped Anon from punching him while holding him by his collar. However, he was then punched to the ground and kicked by another person. He is also pressing charges for assault.
Members of the group also threatened a Prachatai reporter filming the incident in an attempt to intimidate him into stopping the recording.
At least 3 members of the royalist groups were also injured. Wasan was hit in the head and arm, possibly with a baton carried by an activist who was blocking him from getting close to Tantawan.
At Pathumwan Police Station, Tantawan told reporters that she apologized for driving carelessly, but noted that every citizen has the right to raise questions about royal motorcades. She showed a picture of the poll she conducted 2 years ago on whether people face trouble from royal motorcades, and asked why dissidents are still prosecuted in a democratic country.
“Is our country really democratic? I want to ask the adults in this country, and I don’t know how they are going to answer me. Are they going to answer by slapping me with more charges? Will they put me in jail again?” said Tantawan.
Tantawan said that she wanted no violence and only wanted to make her statement. She said she was punched in the head and her hair was pulled, while another activist named Khatatorn was put in a chokehold and punched repeatedly. She said that, although an activist was seen in a video clip hitting Wasan with a baton, it was in self-defence, since Khatatorn was attacked first and everyone else was helping him and trying to defend themselves.
Khatatorn said he saw the royalist group members walking towards Tantawan and tried to tell them that the event was over and they were about to leave. Instead, he was put in a chokehold and punched.
15-year-old activist Thanalop Phalanchai also said someone yanked at her hair and collar because she tried to help another activist being attacked.
- Impact of Event
- 12
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Blogger/ Social Media Activist, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD, Youth
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Feb 9, 2024
- Event Description
The police have arrested 10 people after journalist Nikhil Wagle’s car was attacked in Pune last week. However, Wagle himself was subjected to a new FIR filed against him after the attack for violating a police notice
In Pune, a car taking Maharashtra journalist Nikhil Wagle, and activist Vishwambhar Choudhary, and human rights lawyer Asim Sarode was brutally attacked on February 9 by people who are believed to be workers in the BJP. The three were en route to a Nirbhay Bano rally in Pune.
After the attack, a second FIR was filed against Wagle at the Parvati police station in Pune where he and several others, which includes organisers of the Nirbhay Bano event in Pune, are now subjects of an FIR. The FIR is based on charges for violation of a police notice. The list of named people in the FIR has members of various political parties, such as Dhiraj Ghate, the Pune unit chief of the BJP along with 250 party members, Arvind Shinde, the Congress party city chief, Prashant Jagtap representing the Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party, and Sanjay More from Shiv Sena. Furthermore, the social media site X was also trending with people calling for his arrest.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, ten members of the BJP were arrested in Pune in connection with the assault on senior journalist Nikhil Wagle. The arrested people have been identified as Deepak Pote, Ganesh Ghosh, Ganesh Sherla, Raghvendra Mankar, Swapnil Naik, Pratik Desarda, Dushyant Mohol, Datta Sagre, Girish Mankar, and Rahul Paygude. Several charges have been filed against them which include sections of the Indian Penal Code related to rioting and voluntarily causing harm.
Prior to the attack, BJP Pune’s president Dheeraj Ghate reportedly commented on the incident on X, associating Wagle with ‘naxalism’. There is thus far no news or reports of Ghate being arrested as of yet.
Meanwhile, the Indian Express has reported that Nikhil Wagle’s team, with Vishwambhar Choudhary and Asim Sarode, has called for the arrest of Dheeraj Ghate and other party figures purportedly after the attack on Wagle.
On February 11, Sunil Deodhar from the BJP called for the arrest of journalist Nikhil Wagle who according to him has made “objectionable” remarks directed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani.
According to reports, Deodhar has stated that he has lodged a formal complaint with the Pune police on February 8 against Nikhil Wagle, which he has done because of “offensive tweet” by Wagle posted on February 6. The FIR, filed at Vishrambaug police station, books Wagle for charges against his remarks under IPC sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 500 (defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief).
According to the report, Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar stated that an investigation into the matter is currently ongoing. Furthermore, a senior police official has stated to the newspaper that there are no immediate plans to arrest Wagle in connection with the case and the decision to arrest him will only be made after the investigation is complete.
Wagle’s car was brutally attacked on February 9 in Pune with scores of people hitting his car with hockey sticks, stone, and iron rods resulting in smashed windows of the car and injured passenger. Wagle was informed about a tense atmosphere after he made a tweet by the police.
The police have issued a public statement saying that they had asked Wagle not to leave for the event until all the protestors were detained. However, the police has stated, that due to traffic the detaining people began to take time, but Wagle did not take note and left for the event and even ‘changed routes.’ However the police has stated that they had plainclothes police personnel following him for his safety. About the attacked they have stated that, “When the car was attacked, the plainclothes policemen standing between agitators and Wagle’s car tried to stop the attack, but heavy traffic and bystanders ruled out the possibility of using force of evacuating him and his car immediately.”
Speaking to Sabrang India after the incident, Nikhil Wagle narrated about how the events took place, “The fact that we survived was a chamatkaar (miracle). We were about to die, but got saved. This was a mob lynching. We were surrounded in all directions and chased. I’ve been attacked even before this, but this was the worst.” Further, he says that the attack took place in police presence, “The police came with us, but the police did not protect us.”
“The police stopped us at Asim Sarode’s house – this was a house arrest. They kept telling us to stop for half an hour, ten minutes more. But finally I decided to leave and I told the police I have committed to the people.” He further goes on to say that the stone-pelting started soon after they took to the road.
Meanwhile a BJP leader from Pune has reportedly stated that the party workers agitated against Wagle because of his own statements. According to the Indian Express, BJP spokesperson Sandeep Khardekar has said that, “Both actions are condemnable. The attack on Wagle’s car is condemnable, and his disparaging remarks against PM Modi and LK Advani are even more condemnable. Our party workers would not have done what they did if they were not instigated by Wagle’s objectionable comment. Wagle stooped very low but no one took him to task. Why are people silent on his derogatory comment?”
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment, Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Lawyer, Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Feb 9, 2024
- Event Description
On February 9, 2024, Oktyabr’ District Court ruled to shut down Kloop Media. On 22 August 2023, the Prosecutor's Office of the city of Bishkek filed a motion to shut down the human rights media outlet Kloop Media (Kloop) in the Oktyabrskiy and Pervomaiskiy district courts of Bishkek. The main reason cited by the Prosecutor’s office to shut down the organization is that Kloop allegedly carried out activities, specifically media activities, that go beyond the scope of the charter of the human rights organization. Kloop Media will appeal this decision in Bishkek City Court.
Kloop Media (Kloop) is a human rights media outlet in Kyrgyzstan. It was founded in 2007 and gained recognition in 2010 for its prompt and transparent coverage of the April 2010 revolution in Kyrgyzstan. Kloop strives to adhere to the principles of independence, impartiality, honesty, and accuracy while sharing information that holds significance to the public. It has used investigative journalism to document human rights violations, focusing on topics that include corruption, armed conflicts, and violations in such contexts.
In 2023, the authorities commissioned a forensic linguistic review and a forensic review from the perspective of political science of Kloop’s content. The motion cites excerpts from these forensic reviews that accuse Kloop, among many things, of convincing the population to negatively assess Kyrgyzstan’s relations with Russia and form a negative impression of the actions of the state authorities. During both hearings on February 5 and February 9, the Court heard authors of expert reviews, whose reviews became the basis of the Prosecutor's Office’s claim to shut down Kloop Media. During the February 5 hearing the author of the expert review that was specifically cited in the initial Prosecutor’s claim, confirmed that the review has no grounds and needs to be redone. They confessed that they just signed the review, but never authored it, and thus can’t respond to the questions of the defense attorney.
Another major issue highlighted by the Kloop Media attorneys about the expert reviews concerns the fact that the body of texts that they’ve analyzed was comprised of the official publications of Kloop, and from the personal publication of Kloop’s ex-founder Bektour Iskander, who resigned from the media outlet in November 2023.
All seven experts, who have provided a so-called “psychiatric” review of Kloop’s publications continued to argue that Kloop fails their civic responsibility as their publications impact the growing amount of people with mental health issues and provoke migration of people from Batken Region. One of the experts on the stand argued that the fact that Kloop in their articles criticizes the state authorities provokes panic and “augmentation of psychiatric diseases;” the expert at the same time failed to provide any statistical data to support this claim. Another expert claimed that Kloop “deliberately invaded the consciousness of literally every citizen of Kyrgyzstan;” however, couldn’t confirm if Kloop was able to invade their consciousness, too. None of the experts provided any statistical data or any data to confirm their claims; despite this during the deliberations, the Prosecutor continued to claim that all the experts had given “clear responses to all the questions.”
During the hearing on February 9, 2024, the representative of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, continued to state that Kloop Media is registered as a foundation, not as a media outlet, and thus can’t produce media content. At the same time, Kloop Media re-registered and changed the statute of the foundation, that allows human rights defenders to register a media outlet. Kloop Media attorneys of February 5 argued that the Prosecutor's Office’s lawsuit should be dropped, as the violation itself – inconsistency of the Kloop Media foundation’s statute and its activities – was eliminated. On February 9, the Prosecutor filed a motion to prohibit any further activities considering the re-registering of Kloop Media; the Court partially fulfilled the motion.
Front Line Defenders condemns the decision to shut down Kloop Media, as it believes that the media outlet is being targeted for its peaceful and legitimate human rights work. Front Line Defenders remains concerned about the scope of threats against human rights defenders and journalists in Kyrgyzstan and argues that in the context of repressive legislative initiatives concerning the work of media and NGOs, the targeting of Kloop fits into the recent pattern of systemic limiting of rights and freedoms of human rights defenders.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Censorship, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Media freedom, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to work
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Feb 8, 2024
- Event Description
In the heart of Myanmar's Bago Region, a stark event unfolded on February 8, claiming the life of Noble Aye, a prominent activist known for her unwavering commitment to democracy and human rights. As she was returning from a court appearance in Waw Township, junta troops fatally shot her, a tragic end to a life dedicated to fighting for freedom in a country marred by political unrest and repression. This incident is not an isolated tragedy but a reflection of the ongoing violence the military regime inflicts upon those who dare to stand against it.
The Life and Legacy of Noble Aye Noble Aye's activism was not born in a moment but shaped by years of witnessing and opposing the injustices perpetrated by Myanmar's military regime. Her voice first echoed in the streets during the protests against police brutality in 1996 and again in 2007, marking her as a relentless advocate for change. Her commitment to the cause saw her behind bars, a testament to her resilience and dedication to the pro-democracy movement. Even after her arrest at a military checkpoint on January 29, under the allegation of possessing weapons, her spirit remained unbroken. Noble Aye's journey, tragically cut short, serves as a poignant reminder of the ultimate sacrifice many activists face in the pursuit of justice and freedom.
A Pattern of Violence and Denial The killing of Noble Aye and another political prisoner, as they returned from a court appearance, underscores a grim pattern of violence against political dissenters in Myanmar. Reports suggest that the junta troops did not hesitate to use lethal force near the village of Kyaik Hla, a stark demonstration of the regime's brutality. Despite these clear acts of violence, the military junta denies that the prisoners died in its custody, a claim that stands in stark contrast to the reality experienced by those who oppose the regime. This denial is not new but part of a longstanding tradition of obfuscation and misinformation aimed at suppressing the truth about the regime's actions.
The Unforgotten and the Unyielding In June 2023, another harrowing incident saw at least 13 political prisoners shot dead by troops in central Bago following a prison truck crash, a stark reminder of the dangers faced by those incarcerated for their political beliefs. These incidents, though heartbreaking, are pivotal in highlighting the sheer resilience and courage of Myanmar's pro-democracy activists. Noble Aye's death, while a profound loss, also serves as a rallying cry for those who continue to fight against oppression and for the establishment of a truly democratic society in Myanmar. Her legacy, and those of countless others who have sacrificed their lives, fuels the unyielding spirit of resistance against tyranny.
In the wake of Noble Aye's untimely demise, the world is reminded once again of the ongoing struggle for democracy and human rights in Myanmar. The military regime's continued repression and violence against its own people underscore a critical need for international attention and action. As the news of Noble Aye's death spreads, it ignites a renewed determination among activists and supporters of democracy worldwide to stand in solidarity with the people of Myanmar. Their fight is far from over, but Noble Aye's life and legacy endure, inspiring all who seek justice and freedom in the face of oppression.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 7, 2024
- Event Description
A court in Vietnam’s Soc Trang province has sentenced an ethnic Khmer Krom man to three-and-a-half years in prison for “abusing democratic freedoms” under Article 331 of the country’s criminal code, state-controlled media reported.
Prosecutors said Wednesday that Danh Minh Quang, 34, used his personal Facebook account to post comments and live-stream videos which “violated Vietnam laws.”
Quang set up the account in Dec. 2018 and the prosecution claimed that from 2021 to July 2023 there were 51 comments, photos and videos that had “contents that were negative, propaganda and distorted realities for defaming the honor and dignity of State officials.”
Quang was arrested by Soc Trang Provincial Police on July 31, 2023 along with Thach Chuong and To Hoang Chuong.
All three were prosecuted on charges of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on State interests, legitimate rights and interests of organizations and individuals.”
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch , called for authorities to drop all charges against Quang and immediately release him.
“The government of Soc Trang province shamelessly trampled on the right of freedom of expression and retaliated against a citizen for simply stating his politically independent views on social media,” Robertson said in a statement on Feb. 11.
“The National Assembly of Vietnam should urgently amend the penal code and repeal rights-abused articles, including Aticle 331, which is systematically being used by the Vietnamese government to violate rights of ordinary people across the country,” he said.
Nearly 1.3-million Khmer Krom live in a part of Vietnam that was once southeastern Cambodia. They have faced serious restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly and movement.
In August last year, community members living in the U.S. organized a demonstration in front of the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington DC to protest the policy of oppressing the Khmer Krom people and demanding the release of the three men.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Indigenous peoples' rights defender, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 7, 2024
- Event Description
On 7 February 2024, provincial courts convicted two well-known activists in separate cases, continuing the trend of judicial harassment against human rights advocates in Cambodia.
The Ratanakiri Provincial Court earlier today announced its verdict convicting environmental activist Chhorn Phalla of defamation, insult and incitement to commit a felony under Articles 305, 502 and 495 of the Cambodian Criminal Code. The court sentenced Phalla to one year in prison and imposed a 10 million riel (around US$2,500) fine.
Phalla is an outspoken environmental activist who has been repeatedly prosecuted for his advocacy for the protection of natural resources and monitoring of deforestation. Phalla had been imprisoned since September 2021 for criminal charges arising from two other separate cases. Both cases were also based on his activism. Phalla was finally released from prison in October 2023 after his convictions in the other two cases were overturned, only to be again convicted today.
The Banteay Meanchey Provincial Court also today announced a verdict convicting political opposition official Chao Veasna of incitement to commit a felony and incitement to discriminate under Articles 494, 495 and 496 of the Cambodian Criminal Code. It is unclear at this time which person or group of people Veasna was found to have discriminated against contrary to the Criminal Code.
The court sentenced Veasna to three years in prison, imposed a 6 million riel (around US$1,500) fine, and ordered Veasna to pay 80 million riel (around US$20,000) in compensation. The court also suspended Veasna’s right to vote and his right to stand for election for five years.
Veasna, a Steering Committee member of the opposition Candlelight Party and Poipet District President, was arrested in July 2023 after allegedly posting a photograph of his spoiled National Election ballot on social media. This arrest came shortly after Veasna was released from Correctional Centre 3 (also known as Trapeang Phlong prison) in February 2022, having served a five-year sentence for multiple other convictions related to the exercise of his political rights. Veasna was at that time an elected commune chief and member of the former opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP).
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Cambodia: environmental defender arrested
- Country
- Nepal
- Initial Date
- Feb 6, 2024
- Event Description
Rautahat based reporter at Madhyanha national daily Krishna Tiwari was attacked while reporting on February 6. Rautahat lies in Madhesh Province of Nepal.
Reporter Tiwari shared with Freedom Forum that he was reporting on sugarcane farmers’ complaint about the sugarcane mill owner’s low pricing of their product. Tiwari was called by the farmers on the site to report. While the reporter started taking video of dispute among farmers and mill owner in the presence of Sugarcane Farmers Association’s Chairperson, few people arrived and seized his camera. They shouted- why are you recording?
As Tiwari refused to delete the video, they hit Tiwari with sugarcane sticks. They not only damaged his camera but also thrashed him on floor and kicked him brutally. Senior Sub-Inspector Arun Kumar Singh rescued Tiwari from the incident and took him to a nearby clinic for treatment. Tiwari has bruises over his body and is undergoing treatment at Surya Hospital, Birgunj.
Area Police Office, Garuda’s Deputy Superintendant of Police Om Prakash Khanal informed Freedom Forum that one of the attackers was arrested and was kept in detention. “We are waiting for the victim’s First Information Report to further investigate the case”, he said.
Freedom Forum condemns the attack upon reporter. It is a gross violation of press freedom. Hence, FF strongly urges the concerned authority to fairly investigate the case and ensure safety of journalists.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 6, 2024
- Event Description
The plan of Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta (UNY) students to voice criticism of the current democratic situation was disbanded by the rectorate. UNY stated that it would not give a statement like other campuses.
Previously, a poster on social media circulated “Call for Consolidation: Inviting Lecturers, Students, and the Entire Academic Community of UNY. Wake up the people from the blatantly tainted democratic party”. The event was originally held at the UNY Rectorate Terrace, at 13.00 WIB, Tuesday (6/2).
However, based on Gatra.com's observation at the location, after an hour the agenda did not take place. The student coordinator of the event, Farras Raihan, explained that the activity was not a demonstration or the reading of a statement, but a discussion.
“We invite lecturers and professors whose knowledge must be far above us to participate in the discussion. The hope is how UNY responds to the current democratic situation and expresses its alignment,” said the Chairman of BEM UNY.
However, he explained that the rectorate did not give permission for the activity. Activities are allowed but must be outside the UNY campus area.
“We received pressures not to hold this activity, there were even lecturers who stated that they would sanction students who participated,” said Farras while showing a screenshot in a group conversation about the threat.
About 30 students then continued to gather around the rectorate. They were met by the Secretary of the Directorate of Academic, Student Affairs and Alumni of UNY, Prof. Guntur, who questioned the purpose and permission of the activity.
“What is this activity? Where is the permit? Where is the proposal? If there is a permit, the rectorate can even fund it and there are lecturers who accompany it. If there is no permit, I will send this to security,” said Guntur in front of the students.
If there is no permit, Guntur invites students to carry out activities outside the campus area fence. “If there is no activity, then why do you gather,” he said.
The rectorate and students had a dialog for about 20 minutes. Students were then asked to disperse from the rectorate area. The discussion failed to be held.
To reporters, Guntur questioned the permit and organizers of the activity. “They admitted that the activity was not on behalf of the student organization,” he said.
Guntur also stated that UNY would not give a statement about the political situation like other campuses. “There is no pressure from anywhere. We are neutral because we are civil servants,” he said.
He also denied that there was pressure on UNY not to hold the agenda. “There is none. We are a government institution, just follow the government's rules. We are a campus, we do not have the capacity to deal with the issues of this country,” he said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Feb 5, 2024
- Event Description
The Birinchi Mai district court in Bishkek told RFE/RL on February 5 that activist Kanykei Aranova, who was extradited from Moscow last week, was placed in preliminary detention until March 22 as part of a case concerning protests against a Kyrgyz-Uzbek border deal that led to the arrests of 27 activists, politicians, and journalists. Aranova was charged with inciting hatred and public calls to seize power. The 37-year-old Aranova left Kyrgyzstan for Russia in 2022 after she openly protested the border demarcation deal, which saw Kyrgyzstan hand over the territory of the Kempir-Abad water reservoir to Uzbekistan.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Feb 5, 2024
- Event Description
Former Prime Minister Hun Sen and the ruling Cambodian People’s Party on Monday sued the spokesperson of human rights group ADHOC, accusing him of defamation in his recent criticism of the ruling party’s legal actions toward a leading opposition figure.
Party lawyers demanded 2 billion riel (US$500,000) in damages in the lawsuit against Soeng Senkaruna filed in Phnom Penh Municipal Court.
The complaint signed by three lawyers for the Cambodian People’s Party, or CPP, said that Senkaruna commented last week to The Cambodia Daily that the party has used its influence with the courts to put pressure on its political opponents.
The lawsuit is the latest to target a critic of powerful Cambodian politicians. In November, a Banteay Meanchey man was sentenced to three years in prison for comments he made on Facebook over the CPP’s inability to prevent illegal immigration from Vietnam and drug use.
Last year, the Supreme Court upheld a US$1 million defamation judgment against Son Chhay, the vice president of the opposition Candlelight Party.
A lower court in 2022 ordered Son Chhay to pay the amount to the CPP and the National Election Committee following comments he made about local commune elections, which he said was marred by irregularities.
According to the lawsuit, Senkaruna told The Cambodia Daily that the CPP should seek to compete with opposition politicians in the political realm, such as through free and fair elections, rather than through court complaints.
The Cambodia Daily newspaper closed in Phnom Penh in 2017. It has since been relaunched as a Khmer- and English-language online news outlet based in the United States.
The outlet cited Senkaruna's paraphrased comments in a Khmer-language article on Friday. He was not directly quoted.
Hun Sen’s online threat
The lawsuit claims that Senkaruna's remarks seriously damaged the CPP's reputation and deliberately harmed the upcoming Feb. 25 Senate election.
It was filed the day after Hun Sen made remarks on Facebook threatening to sue Senkaruna for commenting on the Son Chhay case. After stepping down as prime minister in August, Hun Sen was named president of the CPP.
Senkaruna declined to comment about the CPP’s lawsuit when contacted by Radio Free Asia.
However, on Facebook he said his comments in the article were aimed at promoting “respect for human rights, law, social justice and democracy” without serving any particular political party.
“Any paraphrasing of my words to add or leave out [the meaning] in order to attack directly on the name of a political party was not my intention and goal,” he wrote on Facebook.
Senkaruna has been actively involved in the promotion of human rights in Cambodia for more than 20 years, Am Sam Ath of human rights group Licadho told RFA.
“He is always active in helping people with land grabbing and other rights violations, and in asking the relevant authorities to intervene to find a solution for the people,” he said.
On Facebook, Senkaruna added a note of thanks to friends and supporters.
“Thank you very much for the kind words, greetings and concerns from my family, friends, media, civil society, international partners and foreign diplomatic friends for my safety,” he wrote. “I’m fine.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 4, 2024
- Event Description
On 4 February 2024, the Linyi Municipal Intermediate People’s Court in Shandong province convicted woman human rights defender Li Qiaochu for “inciting subversion of State power” and sentenced her to three years and eight months in prison, to be followed by two years of “deprivation of political rights”.
Li Qiaochu (李翘楚) is a feminist, researcher, and human rights defender who has advocated for the rights for workers, migrants, women, and human rights defenders detained in China. In December 2022, she was honoured with the Embassy Tulip award from the Embassy of the Netherlands in Beijing.
In the verdict, the court said Li Qiaochu had helped fellow human rights defender and legal scholar Xu Zhiyong to set up and maintain a blog to which articles and essays on topics such as human rights, democratic reforms, and social justice movements were uploaded. The court ruled that these writings were aimed at “subverting State power”. In April 2023, another court in Linyi convicted Xu Zhiyong for “subversion of State power” and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.
The court also defended its decision to close the trial to the public and said it did so in order to protect evidence and other information classified by the police as “State secrets”. The court also rejected Li Qiaochu’s argument that testimonies obtained while she was detained under “residential surveillance at a designated location” should be deemed inadmissible because they were provided under duress.
Front Line Defenders strongly condemns the conviction and sentencing of woman human rights defender Li Qiaochu as it believes it is solely in retaliation against her peaceful and legitimate human rights work. We call on the relevant authorities in China to promptly quash the conviction and sentence against the woman human rights defender and immediately release her. Pending her release, the authorities should ensure she has regular and timely access to adequate medical care to address on-going health issues she has been facing since her arbitrary detention began in February 2021.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Feb 4, 2024
- Event Description
On the 76th Independence Day of Sri Lanka, the undergraduates of the University of Jaffna, in alliance with civil society groups based in the North, organized a peaceful protest in Kilinochchi. These protests highlighted the ongoing acts of injustice and violations by the state and the Sinhala-Buddhisization of the North and East of the country and demanded a political solution to the national question.
The students who participated in the protests were attacked brutally by the police with water cannons and tear gas. The police were seen dragging the students by their arms, pushing them around and forcing them onto the ground. Several students who took part in the protest were arrested.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association strongly condemns the police’s attempt to suppress the protest using brute force. Yesterday’s violence demonstrates that there is no freedom for the Tamils in Sri Lanka to assemble peacefully and fight for their rights in a democratic manner even on the Independence Day of the country.
The Tamils in Sri Lanka have been fighting for their political rights and resisting state oppression through non-violent means since the end of the thirty-year-long armed struggle in 2009. There have been protests led by Tamils in the North-East of the country against land grabs, militarization and Sinhala-Buddhisization. Some of these protests made a call for the release of the political prisoners and justice for those who were made to disappear. Instead of addressing these issues in a democratic manner, the state often unleashed majoritarian violence on the protesting Tamils.
The current Sri Lankan regime tries to ensure its survival by suppressing protests. It uses draconian laws and violence to curtail, stifle and take away people’s rights to free speech, assembly and protest. The attacks on the peaceful student protesters on the 76th Independence Day is a manifestation of these authoritarian methods of governance and Sinhala-Buddhist majoritarianism.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association emphasizes that the people of this country across ethnic, religious, linguistic and regional boundaries should speak up against the violence unleashed on the Independence Day which undermined the very idea of ‘independence’ and turned it into a farce. It is only by finding just and lasting solutions to the ethnic conflict and the economic crisis that the government can win the trust and confidence of the people. The government will never be able to contain the resistance it faces today by introducing repressive laws or resorting to violence. At a time when we are faced with a serious crisis, it is important that we come together to protect the democratic spaces available to us today. The Association believes firmly that it is only by acting collectively and courageously in these spaces that we can strengthen democracy and defeat state oppression.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association
On the 76th Independence Day of Sri Lanka, the undergraduates of the University of Jaffna, in alliance with civil society groups based in the North, organized a peaceful protest in Kilinochchi. These protests highlighted the ongoing acts of injustice and violations by the state and the Sinhala-Buddhisization of the North and East of the country and demanded a political solution to the national question.
The students who participated in the protests were attacked brutally by the police with water cannons and tear gas. The police were seen dragging the students by their arms, pushing them around and forcing them onto the ground. Several students who took part in the protest were arrested.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association strongly condemns the police’s attempt to suppress the protest using brute force. Yesterday’s violence demonstrates that there is no freedom for the Tamils in Sri Lanka to assemble peacefully and fight for their rights in a democratic manner even on the Independence Day of the country.
The Tamils in Sri Lanka have been fighting for their political rights and resisting state oppression through non-violent means since the end of the thirty-year-long armed struggle in 2009. There have been protests led by Tamils in the North-East of the country against land grabs, militarization and Sinhala-Buddhisization. Some of these protests made a call for the release of the political prisoners and justice for those who were made to disappear. Instead of addressing these issues in a democratic manner, the state often unleashed majoritarian violence on the protesting Tamils.
The current Sri Lankan regime tries to ensure its survival by suppressing protests. It uses draconian laws and violence to curtail, stifle and take away people’s rights to free speech, assembly and protest. The attacks on the peaceful student protesters on the 76th Independence Day is a manifestation of these authoritarian methods of governance and Sinhala-Buddhist majoritarianism.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association emphasizes that the people of this country across ethnic, religious, linguistic and regional boundaries should speak up against the violence unleashed on the Independence Day which undermined the very idea of ‘independence’ and turned it into a farce. It is only by finding just and lasting solutions to the ethnic conflict and the economic crisis that the government can win the trust and confidence of the people. The government will never be able to contain the resistance it faces today by introducing repressive laws or resorting to violence. At a time when we are faced with a serious crisis, it is important that we come together to protect the democratic spaces available to us today. The Association believes firmly that it is only by acting collectively and courageously in these spaces that we can strengthen democracy and defeat state oppression.
The University of Jaffna Teachers’ Association
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Feb 3, 2024
- Event Description
On February 3, 2024, woman human rights defender Veronika Fonova was targeted while holding a solo protest in the city center in Almaty, Kazakhstan, aimed to raise awareness about the ban of the 2024 International Women’s Day March in Almaty by the city authorities. On 21 April 2023, the Specialised Inter-district Administrative Court of Almaty ruled to support the Akimat of Almaty’s ban of the International Women’s Day demonstration and a march in 2024. Following the attack, Veronika Fonova filed a complaint to the police.
Veronika Fonova is a feminist activist and woman human rights defender from Almaty, Kazakhstan. She is one of the founding members of the 8MarchKZ, a grassroots feminist movement that unites to organize the annual feminist and women’s march in Almaty on International Women’s Day. The organizing committee of the initiative includes a diverse group of women human rights defenders, who work to promote and protect women and LGBTQI+ rights. The first Women’s March in Almaty took place in 2017. Veronika is also a founding member of KazFem, a feminist collective that focuses on shifting public discourse on domestic violence in Kazakhstan.
On February 3, 2024, woman human rights defender Veronika Fonova held a solo protest in the city center of Almaty, Kazakhstan, after acquiring permission from the city authorities. She was holding a poster that had multiple statements in Kazakh and Russian languages, calling for the freedom of assembly and promoting criminalization of domestic violence. The poster also said: “We need a Demonstration on March 8.” While Veronika Fonova’s friends recorded a video of her holding a poster and explaining her message, a man wearing a medical mask pushed her, attempted to hit her, and snatched the poster from her. The attacker also requested to call the police on a woman human rights defender. The police arrived on site and collected statements both from Veronika Fonova and from her attacker.
Women human rights defenders from 8MarchKz suggested that this was an orchestrated attack. An attack like this could serve as a justification for the decision of the Almaty city authorities to ban the peaceful demonstration because it is a threat to public safety. Earlier, on February 1, 2024, 8MarchKZ held a press conference in Almaty’s Press Club, where the representatives outlined the timeline of their contend with the city authorities, which commenced in April 2023, discussed systemic resistance on the side of the authorities, and publically discussed security considerations that the organizers have for the Demonstration they have envisioned. They also focused on the need for spaces where women can raise their voices and repeated that the safety of women in Kazakhstan – the theme of the 2024 demonstration – is a pressing issue in the country.
In March 2023, right after the International Women’s Day protest in Almaty, the 8MarchKZ requested a permit for the next year's demonstration “For the Rights of Kazakhstani Women.” In April 2023, the city authorities of Almaty refused to issue the permit, citing a significant threat to security and public order. Women human rights defenders from 8MarchKZ took this decision to court; in April 2023, the Specialised Inter-district Administrative Court of Almaty ruled in support of the prohibition of the International Women’s Day March in 2024 by the Almaty city authorities. In June 2023, representatives of 8MarchKZ appealed this decision, and in the following September, the Court refused to lift the ban. In December 2023 and in January 2024, 8MarchKZ representatives requested another permit for their peaceful demonstration, announcing that the new theme of the demonstration would be “For Safety and Security of Women in Kazakhstan”; both of these requests were denied by the city authorities of Almaty, citing similar “threat of disturbing public order” reasoning.
Front Line Defenders condemns the attack against woman human rights defender Veronika Fonova and urges the Kazakhstani authorities to promptly investigate the attempted assault and bring the persons responsible to justice. At the same time, Front Line Defenders urges the Kazakhstani authorities not to misuse this attack against Veronika Fonova as a justification for the continued refusal to approve the 2024 Women’s March. Front Line Defenders continues to condemn the city authorities of Almaty's denial of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly to feminist and women’s rights defenders from 8MarchKZ. Front Line Defenders calls upon the authorities of Kazakhstan to ensure that the 8MarchKZ feminist initiative can exercise their rights to protect and promote women’s rights, and feminist agendas, and to peacefully assemble and march for the cause of International Women’s Day.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to Protest
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Kazakhstan: 2024 Women’s March prohibited
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 3, 2024
- Event Description
The Community Coalition urges the National Police Chief and Komnas HAM to investigate the repressive actions of a group of plainclothes people who dispersed a student forum to discuss the impeachment of President Jokowi.
Imparsial researcher Hussein Ahmad explained that the forum was held on Saturday, February 3, 2024 at around 23.06 WIB. The Jakarta student forum was held at the Trilogy University Campus, Kalibata, South Jakarta.
“Suddenly a group of unknown people dressed in plainclothes arrived. Without explaining the purpose and objectives of their arrival, they forced students to leave the campus while threatening students not to discuss the plan for a demonstration that encourages the impeachment of the president. Not only that, there was even one student who experienced violence in the form of being horned in the head,” Hussein said in his statement, Sunday, February 4, 2024.
Therefore, said Hussein, the coalition considers this incident not just an ordinary act of crime or thuggery. The repression against the student forum that discussed the matter of impeaching the president must be seen as an action that is laden with power interests. In fact, he continued, the incident was suspected of being orchestrated or condoned by interested parties.
Then, Hussein said that law enforcement officials, especially the National Police, should be proactive in responding to this incident by conducting investigations.
The National Police must be able to reveal this case not only at the level of field actors, all parties who mastermind or become intellectual actors must also be revealed and prosecuted.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Feb 2, 2024
- Event Description
Three Cambodian human right activists, including a former government party member, have been arrested in Thailand, according to human rights groups.
Lem Sokha, Phan Phana and Kung Raiya were arrested Friday, along with their families, the Manushya Foundation and Human Rights Watch told VOA.
The arrests come just days before Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet will make an official visit to Thailand on February 7.
Lem Sokha, 45, is the vice president of the Cambodian Refugee Committee and had been in Thailand since 2017. He was arrested in Bangkok. Phan Phana, 41, is a member of the Global Cambodia Youth Network and fled to Thailand in 2022. And Kung Raiya, 32, who fled to Thailand in July, is a former member of Cambodia's opposition Candlelight Party and Cambodia's ruling government party.
All three activists had fled to Thailand to avoid political persecution. The Cambodians are recognized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, also known as UNHCR, as persons of concern.
All three were reportedly planning to arrange a political protest on the day of Hun Manet's arrival in Thailand. A report by VOA's sister network Radio Free Asia shows a photo of Raiya as Thai immigration officials arrive at his home.
Both Phana and Raiya's families were also arrested.
Emilie Palamy Pradichit, the founder of the Manushya Foundation in Bangkok, contacted VOA about the arrests. She described the arrests as unjust and called for the activists' release.
"The unjust arrest of three Cambodian activists, along with their families, including four small children aged between 1 and 5 years, just before PM Hun Manet's upcoming visit to Thailand is deeply concerning. This highlights the harsh reality of transnational repression, where Cambodian and Thai authorities are working hand in hand against these individuals. We, a coalition of human rights organizations, are tirelessly working to secure their release," she told VOA.
Phana, who was arrested at his home in the city of Rayong but was taken into custody in Bangkok, has been charged with crossing the border illegally, according to VOA sources familiar with the matter who chose to remain anonymous. His wife, Seim Kork, 33, and two sons, aged 1 and 2 years old, were also arrested.
Raiya was detained in Bangkok and was charged for overstaying his visa in Thailand, according to VOA sources familiar with the matter. His wife Sok Sreynich, 28, and their son, 1, and daughter, 5 were also arrested but are being held in a different detention facility.
Phil Robertson, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Asia Division, insists the activists and their families should be sent to a third country.
"Our view is that those people shouldn't be arrested. It shouldn't be a crime to seek protection in a neighboring country when you're on the run for your political or human rights activities in your home country. They should be finding a way to help them go to a third country where they'll be safe instead of persecuting him in this way," he told VOA.
"How traumatic is this for a two-year-old and a four-year-old they see their dad being arrested in Rayong and with his wife and children separated from them. This is the real drama that these decisions by the Thai officials cause for these refugee families," he added.
VOA contacted the Cambodian Embassy in Thailand for comment but has yet to receive a reply.
Leaders promise new era
Cambodia has been ruled by the same political party for 45 years. The Cambodia People's Party has maintained its grip on power by banning opposition parties and cracking down on dissidents. Critics of Cambodia's leadership have been threatened with arrest and targeted either at home or abroad in recent years, including in Thailand.
Thailand and neighboring Cambodia have endured a complicated relationship over the years, mainly over border and cultural conflicts. Now Bangkok and Phnom Penh have new government leaders and both have promised a new era in relations after Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin met Manet in Cambodia last year, vowing to work together on transnational crime.
Arrests seen as transnational repression
Robertson says Friday's arrests are an example of transnational repression.
"This is Thailand's welcome gift to Hun Manet who was supposed to be arriving here next week. Transnational repression rears its ugly head at a time when Hun Manet is consolidating control and making pals in the neighborhood with Prime Minister Srettha and the rest. What is quite clear we've seen a very close relationship between the top leaders of Cambodia and Thailand," Robertson added.
Since 2014, more than 150 individuals in Thailand have been victims of transnational repression, according to a 2022 report by Freedom House.
Pradichit is now concerned the Cambodian refugees may face deportation but warned it would violate Thailand's own laws.
"We, a coalition of human rights organizations, are tirelessly working to secure their release. We urgently call upon Thai authorities not to deport these activists to Cambodia, where they, along with their families, face the grave risk of imprisonment and torture. Such deportation would flagrantly violate Section 13 of the Thai Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act, enacted in February 2023," she said.
Thailand enacted the Act on Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance in 2023, which prohibits sending or deporting a person to another country where that person would be in danger of torture, inhumane treatment or enforced disappearance.
But Thailand has not ratified the United Nation's 1951 Refugee Convention, so it has no specific domestic legal framework for the protection of urban refugees and asylum-seekers, meaning protection for refugees, even if recognized by the UNCHR, is limited.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Transnational repression
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Feb 2, 2024
- Event Description
Dozens of academicians have voiced strong warnings against the Jokowi administration, which they say has violated ethics and undermined democracy.
But in the midst of these calls and criticisms, observers said, the police actually showed neutrality by making a tactic to ask a number of campus officials to make a video aimed at appreciating President Jokowi's performance.
Political expert from the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Devi Darmawan, said the police clearly wanted to undermine the critical attitude of the academic community.
Devi also urged that the police officers who did this be dealt with firmly. Because as protectors of society, he said, law enforcement officers "must not serve the interests of the government, let alone Jokowi personally".
Responding to this issue, Karopenmas of the National Police's Public Relations Division, Trunoyudo Wisnu Andiko, argued that the request to make a video testimony was a form of security maintenance so that the community would not be provoked or divided ahead of the election.
Since the end of January until Wednesday (07/02), at least 50 universities have delivered moral appeals and criticisms of President Jokowi's administration.
The latest is Semarang State University (Unnes), which calls it the 'Moral Call of Sekaran Campus'.
Professor of Unnes, Prof. Issy Yuliasri, said that the current state of democracy in Indonesia is being threatened due to "authoritarianism in the name of law".
The ideals of reform to create a democratic, free-expression state have been eroded by oligarchic power behavior that she called "intimidative to civil liberties and abuse of power".
This condition is exacerbated by the erosion of the role model of state administrators and the rampant symbolic manipulation of political elites.
That is why Unnes calls on the president, vice president, ministers and state officials to uphold the principles of democracy, the constitution, and the mandate of reform.
State officials are also urged not to abuse power for personal or group interests or momentary electoral gain.
To the Police / TNI, he called on them to uphold neutrality and not be manipulated by power for momentary interests.
"Which sacrifices integrity and commitment to the administration of a state that is clean from corruption, collusion and nepotism."
"Meanwhile, all elements of the nation are invited to close up to guard the upholding of dignified democracy, the constitution, and the rule of law..."
Lecturer at STF Driyarkara, A. Setyo Wibowo, said that the social criticism expressed by dozens of universities in Indonesia is part of the campus responsibility called the 'tridharma of higher education'.
In addition to teaching and research, the 'teaching of truth' carried out by the campus is community service.
"If there is something that is not right in community service, we are also responsible. We voice that the matter of ethics, please yes, that ethics is the basic foundation of living together.Ethics cannot just be put aside in political pragmatism," Setyo said.
In this context, a number of issues that have become the concern of the academic community are the decision of the Constitutional Court that passed President Jokowi's son to the 2024 presidential election.
In addition, the decision of the Election Organizer Honor Council (DKPP) also stated that the chairman and members of the KPU violated the code of ethics for accepting the registration of Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
"We already feel this is not right. We voiced our concerns," Setyo explained.
He also emphasized that the voices of concern of 50 universities, including the academicians in them who criticized Jokowi's administration, were partisanship on values and ethics.
"We are partisans of values, so our alignment is with democratic values and ethical values," Setyo continued.
Meanwhile, Professor Franz Magnis-Suseno - who is also a professor at STF Driyarkara - responded to the phenomenon of police asking campuses to give appreciation to the performance of the Jokowi administration as "too much".
"Now pressure and intimidation are used to silence criticism. The criticism voiced by the academic world is appropriate and should be responded to politically rather than trying to suppress or intimidate," said Romo Magnis - Franz Magnis-Suseno's nickname.
The man who is prolific in producing scholarly books assesses that what happened in Semarang is not in accordance with the right to freedom of speech.
Romo Magnis also sees the position of the police as "a little squeezed" due to pressure.
"I think the intervention in Semarang was at least polite, so it must be recognized, but the police should have rejected something like that," he said.
Furthermore, Romo Magnis assessed that this method is very common in authoritarian countries, when the ruler has difficulty relinquishing his power.
However, President Joko Widodo still has time to stop the incident in Semarang, which may also occur in other areas.
"The police will not make it on their own initiative. They feel pressured, the president is ultimately responsible. If the president allows it, it means he supports it," said Romo Magnis.
Under increasing pressure, the wider academic community generally criticized ethical violations in Gibran's candidacy. Another thing is to urge President Jokowi to take a neutral stance, and guarantee elections without fraud.
At least, there is still one week before the election takes place President Jokowi responds to the call from dozens of universities in Indonesia.
"So it depends on him. But if the pressure continues, it's a shame that he will go down in history, like the president who ended up strangling the results of the good ideas of the reform struggle," said Romo Magnis.
Political observer from BRIN, Devi Darmawan, agrees.
He said, what was conveyed by the academic community towards the non-neutrality of the Jokowi administration over the implementation of the 2024 Election is both a truth and a concern.
This is because the irregularities committed by the President by showing favoritism to the Prabowo-Gibran candidate have damaged the quality of elections and democracy in Indonesia.
For this reason, Devi said, they are willing to 'go down the mountain' to voice these inequalities despite the stakes of their careers and positions at the university.
"We know that it is not easy in the current political situation to voice the truth because there are things that are sacrificed. For example, their position or how campus rules do not allow it to be done by academics," Devi told BBC News Indonesia.
"But they choose to speak out even though they know there will be an impact on them personally and their careers."
Unfortunately, continued Devi, in the midst of calls and criticism of Jokowi's government, law enforcement officials have shown non-neutrality by "serving the interests of the government, let alone Jokowi personally".
The trick is to ask a number of campus officials to make a video aimed at appreciating President Jokowi's performance.
For Devi, the police clearly wanted to undermine the critical attitude of the academic community.
"Loyalty to leadership should not make the police, who have the authority to protect and protect the community, instead serve the government and Jokowi personally," she said.
"We have the boundaries of the state but because of Jokowi's [interests] it seems as if everything must serve what Jokowi wants ... it shouldn't be like that."
A number of universities are known to have been asked by the police to make videos aimed at appreciating President Jokowi's performance.
The Rector of Soegijapranata Catholic University, Semarang, Ferdinandus Hindiarto, admitted that he refused the request because it was considered not in accordance with the attitude of the university.
Previously, Unika along with 26 members of the Association of Indonesian Catholic Universities (APTKI) had made a statement of concern over the condition of Indonesian democracy.
There were six points voiced, which essentially asked the President and his staff to carry out their duties according to the principles of good governance and uphold the oath of office.
"I answered that our choice, our attitude could not fulfill that request. Because we have a strong basis, namely the Apostolic Constitution that Catholic universities seek, find and disseminate the truth," he said as reported by Antara.
But besides Unika, a similar request was apparently addressed to the State Islamic Institute (IAIN) Kudus, Central Java.
The Rector of IAIN Kudus, Prof. Dr. H. Adurrohman Kasdi, confirmed that he had made a video in which he appreciated President Jokowi's performance as requested by the police.
So did the Rector of the University of Semarang (USM), Supari.
In a video spread on social media, he said that "Mr. Joko Widodo leads Indonesia wholeheartedly. He is a statesman who has led Indonesia for ten years to make leaps of progress..."
Other campuses that made 'appreciation videos' include the Rector of Ma'arif Nahdlatul Ulama University Kebumen Imam Satibi, Rector of Jenderal Soedirman University Purwokerto Ahmad Sodiq, and Rector of Muhammadiyah University Purwekorto Jebul Suroso.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Academic freedom, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Academic
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Feb 2, 2024
- Event Description
In a separate case, Le Thanh Lam, wife of political prisoner Bui Tuan Lam, also known as “Spring Onion Bae,” wrote on her Facebook account that police in Da Nang had fined her and seized the foods that she sold to make a living, claiming that these goods did not have proper invoices declaring their origins. After her husband was arrested and imprisoned, Thanh Lam, a mother of three, started to sell local snacks and condiments on social media to earn extra income.
However, on Feb. 2, a market inspection team of the Da Nang Police Department approached Lam when she delivered goods to a customer, confiscating all her products worth about 2 million dong ($82). On Feb. 19, the inspection department summoned Lam, fining her another 1.5 million dong for “selling undocumented goods.”
Thanh Lam believed the police had selectively targeted her because her husband, Bui Tuan Lam, is a political prisoner. She said that after she was forcefully taken to a police station for trying to attend the public trial of her husband in May 2023, a Da Nang public security officer pointed his finger at her face, telling her that he would not leave her and her daughters alone, implying that the police would continue to intimidate and harass them due to their peaceful resistance.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Intimidation and Threats
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to work
- HRD
- Family of HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Feb 1, 2024
- Event Description
Art organizations cried foul over what they considered the baseless arrest on Thursday, February 1 of filmmaker Jade Castro and three other men for allegedly burning down a modern jeepney in Catanauan, Quezon. The Directors’ Guild of the Philippines Inc. (DGPI), the Philippine Center of International PEN (PEN Philippines), and DAKILA released statements of concern on their respective social media accounts on Saturday, February 3.
“Castro declared his innocence and stated he was on vacation with friends when personalities of the Philippine National Polce (PNP) arrested them for a crime that occurred in Catanauan, Quezon,” filmmakers group DGPI detailed.
“Castro shared more disturbing information: the arrest was warrantless. Jade Castro is a vetted DGPI member and an important voice of the Philippine Independent Cinema. We stand by his innocence and testify to his good character. We urge clarity on the matter from the authorities involved, and the immediate release of Jade Castro from detention,” the DGPI concluded. “Jade, known for his socially-relevant films like Endo and Zombadings, has significantly influenced the creative sensibilities of emerging filmmakers through numerous workshops and mentorships, making profound contributions to the film industry,” said progressive artist-activist group DAKILA.
“As an advocate for justice, we urge an immediate, fair, and transparent investigation by Philippine authorities, trusting in our legal system to protect the rights of those in custody,” it urged.
“We call on the Philippine National Police, the Department of Justice, and all relevant authorities to conduct a quick, thorough, and transparent investigation into this and uphold the rule of law, protecting the rights of individuals under their custody,” literary group PEN Philippines said.
‘INOSENTE KAMI!’ According to reports by the Manila Bulletin, on Wednesday, January 31, a modern jeepney owned by the Gumaca Transport Service Cooperative had been burned to the ground, with police and witnesses saying that the perpetrators had worn bonnets and had been armed.
The driver, Carl Villanueva, said they were instructed by the suspects to get off the vehicle, and then the armed group set it on fire.
In turn, management of the said cooperative claimed the culprits were operators of traditional jeepneys, who’ve had beef with the cooperative since the latter filed for franchise consolidation under the government’s PUV Modernization Program.
Police then traced the suspects to Mi Casa Resort in Barangay Butanyog, Mulanay, Quezon. On Thursday, February 1, filmmaker Castro and his friends – sales manager Ernesto Orcine, civil engineer Noel Mariano, and civil engineer Dominic Ramos – who were staying at the said resort, were apprehended and brought to the Catanauan Municipal Police Station. They were then accused by the driver, conductor, and two passengers of the burned jeepney as the culprits.
On February 2, authorities filed a complaint for arson against Castro and his three companions before the local prosecutor’s office.
Colonel Ledon Monte, PNP-Quezon director, said investigators have yet to determine the motive behind the arson.
Relatives of Castro and his peers claimed they were wrongfully arrested.
“The witness said naka-bonnet yung apat; paano matuturo iyon (The witness said the four culprits wore bonnets, so how could they have identified them)?” one of the suspects’ relatives said in a TV Patrol interview.
Moira Lang, a film producer and playwright, said several witnesses stated Castro and his companions were taking part in the revelry at the public plaza of Mulanay on the night the vehicle was burned in Catanauan.
Castro himself, in a series of X posts, claimed innocence and said they were arrested without a warrant.
“INOSENTE KAMI!” Castro wrote in a February 2 post. “Nagbabakasyon lang kaming magkakaibigan sa Mulanay, Quezon, pero inaresto kami sa krimen na nangyari sa Catanauan.”
(WE’RE INNOCENT! My friends and I were just vacationing in Mulanay, Quezon, but were arrested for a crime that happened in Catanauan.)
Later on February 3, Castro wrote, “Guys, sorry, ‘di maka-reply, bawal cellphone. Opo, warrantless arrest, arson.”
(Guys, sorry, I can’t reply to your messages; I’m not allowed to use a cellphone. Yes, this was a warrantless arrest for arson.)
As of writing, Castro and his peers remain detained at the said station.
Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption President Boy Arsenio Evangelista told Rappler that the investigation was “hastily done” and police filed the case without following case build-up processes.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial
- Rights Concerned
- Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Artist
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Feb 1, 2024
- Event Description
A Hong Kong court has found four people guilty of rioting over the storming of the city’s legislative council building that marked a major escalation of pro-democracy protests more than four years ago.
Hundreds of protesters stormed the building on July 1, 2019, after a massive protest march against a proposed extradition bill that would have allowed authorities to send people to mainland China for trial.
After forcing their way inside, they ripped portraits of officials from walls and spray-painted slogans calling for the release of arrested demonstrators. An old colonial-era flag was draped over the speaker’s chair and a plaque bearing the symbol of Hong Kong was blacked out with spray paint.
On Thursday, District Court Judge Li Chi-ho found Ho Chun-yin, actor Gregory Wong, Ng Chi-yung and Lam Kam-kwan guilty of rioting.
Student journalist Wong Ka-ho and Ma Kai-chung, a reporter with Passion Times, who were on trial alongside the four, were acquitted of the rioting charge but found guilty of unlawful entry.
During the trial, Gregory Wong told the court he had entered the building solely to deliver two chargers to reporters who were covering the break-in by protesters.
Video evidence played by the prosecution showed Wong left the chamber immediately after delivering the chargers to a reporter in a yellow vest.
Another defendant, Lam Kam-kwan, told the court he was detained in China a month after the storming of Legco and forced to write a repentance letter.
Police officers denied his claims during a cross-examination by the defence.
Last May, seven others including the former president of the University of Hong Kong’s student union, Althea Suen, and pro-democracy activists Ventus Lau and Owen Chow, pleaded guilty to rioting and will deliver their mitigation statements later on Thursday.
They face a maximum of seven years in prison.
While the government eventually withdrew the extradition bill, the protests, which drew more than a million people onto the streets, had already gathered momentum and the demands had widened to include direct elections for the city’s leaders and police accountability.
The protests were the biggest challenge to the Hong Kong government since the city’s return to Chinese rule in 1997 and led Beijing to impose a sweeping national security law in 2020 that has seen many of the city’s leading opposition politicians and activists arrested, silenced or in exile.
More than 10,200 people were arrested in connection to the protests for various crimes, such as rioting and participating in an unauthorised assembly.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Jan 31, 2024
- Event Description
Ten protesters, eight men and two women, were arrested today outside the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters in Colombo.
The group had been demonstrating since morning, demanding the arrest of former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella for his alleged involvement in a recent drug procurement scandal.
Police spokesperson DIG Nihal Talduwa confirmed the arrests and stated that despite repeated warnings and attempts to disperse the gathering peacefully, the protesters continued their sit-in protest, prompting police intervention.
Meanwhile, Former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella issued a statement this afternoon acknowledging the summons from the CID but claiming his inability to present himself due to conflicting commitments.
He cited a scheduled appearance at the Colombo High Court in another case and his participation in a meeting of the Ministerial Sub-committee on Public Expenditure Management, chaired by the President, as reasons for his absence.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jan 31, 2024
- Event Description
Myat Thu Tan, a contributor to the local online outlet Western News who also had reported for the independent Democratic Voice of Burma, the shuttered 7Day News newspaper, and the banned newspaper The Voice, was shot and killed on January 31 while in military custody in the town of Mrauk-U in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State, according to news reports and Western News editor-in-chief Wunna Khwar Nyo, who spoke with CPJ.
The journalist’s body was found along with six other political detainees buried in a bomb shelter in the Light Infantry Battalion 378’s camp, after it was overrun on February 5 by the insurgent Arakan Army, which is fighting military forces in the area, those sources said, adding that the bodies, including Myat Thu Tan’s, showed signs of torture.
“We strongly condemn the murder of journalist Myat Thu Tan and call on Myanmar authorities to identify and prosecute those responsible,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “A culture of impunity has taken deep root in Myanmar since the 2021 democracy-suspending coup. The junta must stop killing, and start protecting, journalists.”
Myanmar’s military government announced this week that it plans to conscript 60,000 people, suggesting that it is coming under pressure from pro-democracy fighters since seizing power from Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021.
Myat Thu Tan, also known as Phoe Thiha, was arrested at his home in Mrauk-U on September 22, 2022, and held in pre-trial detention under Section 505(a) of the penal code, a broad provision that criminalizes incitement and the dissemination of false news, for critical posts he made on his Facebook page, according to The Irrawaddy and Wunna Khwar Nyo.
Myat Thu Tan was denied family visits while held at Mrauk-U Prison and had not been tried or convicted at the time of his death, Wunna Khwar Nyo told CPJ. The journalist was transferred with the other detainees to the Light Infantry Battalion 378 camp before they were killed, Wunna Khwar Nyo said.
Myanmar’s Ministry of Information did not immediately respond to CPJ’s emailed request for information on Myat Thu Tan’s killing.
Myanmar ranked 9th on CPJ’s latest Global Impunity Index, an annual global ranking of countries where the killers of journalists habitually get away with murder. The nation also is the world’s second-worst jailer of journalists, according to CPJ’s 2023 prison census.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Cambodia
- Initial Date
- Jan 31, 2024
- Event Description
More than 100 garment workers at Shengbo Garment Factory Ltd in Kampong Speu province protested on Saturday, demanding the reinstatement of two workers, who were fired after their election as union leaders in the factory.
Seak Thong, vice president of the independent union, called his termination by the factory as unfair. Independent unions protect the interest and rights of workers, and prevent them from being discriminated against by factory owners, he said. “I’m sad that I cannot be with the workers anymore as I have lost my job for no reason.”
Chinese-owned Shengbo Garment, which produces women’s clothing for Spanish brand MNG and Italy’s Calliope for export to Europe, employs over 700 workers. It began operation in March 2023.
This is the second protest in the factory. The first time was on February 2, this year, where nearly 200 workers protested in front of the factory, according to Thong, who
claimed that the factory administration was aware of the election.
He was contacted by the administration, which urged him to “resign” from the independent union and join the factory-managed union with the bosses. He was told that he would enjoy increased benefits from the factory, but he declined the offer.
“I refused them and he [administration] threatened me that if I did not agree, I [might become] unemployed. He could not guarantee [my job] because [he said] if he had known earlier [about the union], he would have ended the contract faster.”
Thon Thy said on January 31, 2024 the assistant of line five told him that the president of the factory called him and Thong to meet at the office and told them “not to renew the employment contract”.
“I can’t accept this because I didn’t do anything wrong. This clearly shows union discrimination in the factory. We had already informed the factory owner about the election but they refused to accept an independent union.”
On January 9, 2024, the elected members directly informed the company of the election result through administration director Am Mony, but it was rejected. The same day, the members informed them again via post.
Two days later, the elected members applied for registration at the Department of Labor Dispute of the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training.
However, the company only informed Thy and Thong on January 31 not to renew their employment contract.
Yet, Thy hopes that the factory owner would reinstate them, and not discriminate against local unions in the factory. They also asked relevant ministries to check on the enforcement of the labor law in the factory.
“I hope the ministry and the factory owner will resolve this problem by accepting us and other elected independent union [members] to work in the factory like normal to protect workers’ interests.
“We also urge the factory owner to respect the Kingdom’s labor law and union rights, and not harass the workers.” Mony, administrator of Shengbo factory, told CamboJA on Monday morning that protests will no longer be held. “All workers will return to work as normal.”
He also denied the workers’ allegations of union discrimination. “We don’t discriminate against unions. The termination of the contracts was a result of reduced production. “
When asked to reveal the name of the buyer, which apparently reduced orders, he declined to answer. “I can’t say the name as it’s confidential.”
Touch Soeu, president of the Free Trade Union of Workers of the Kingdom of Cambodia (FTUWKC) said factories commit “serious mistakes by dismissing workers without prior notice”, which is illegal and discriminatory against post-election free trade unions.
Soeu alleged that Shengbo “always terminates workers” when they learn about employees who stand as candidates in union elections to protect workers’ interests. “It isn’t the first time the Shengbo factory threatened [workers] of unions, which aren’t under the factory.”
Ministry spokesman Kata Orn acknowledged that a request to form and register a union was received from Shengbo workers. On January 7, 2024, 10 union members were elected to form a union, in which Thon Thy was elected as union president, Seak Thong vice president and Preng Chealy as secretary.
On January 11,2024, the union submitted a registration form to the Dispute Department. On January 25, 2024, the department received a letter from Shengbo stating that the company was against the registration of a free trade union as the leadership, founder and secretary had “resigned from the union”.
On January 1, 2024, the ministry’s Fourth Labor Dispute Office received a complaint from Thy and Thong, the elected union president and vice president, respectively.
Orn said employers will provide information regarding the issue on February 13, 2024, he said, adding that the case is being processed.
“The ministry mediated and explained the union side and the workers. So far, the workers have not protested and are back to work. Separately, the ministry continues to coordinate and resolve the issues of the two [Thy and Thong].”
Khun Tharo, program manager for the Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights (CENTRAL), said this was the second time Shengbo factory has persecuted independent unions during nomination and post-election stage.
Due to the continued persecution of workers and suppression of workers’ rights, the new union members initiated the idea of forming an independent union in the factory to protect workers’ interests.
“This is the second time the company has terminated employment contracts after an independent union was formed in the factory. The first was in November 2023 and the worker has not returned to work in the factory yet.”
“It also highlights the discrimination against local unions, which are protected by union privileges, and the factory’s lack of respect for labor rights in the Kingdom,” Tharo said.
In November 2023, ex-union leader Roeun Kolap was fired after she joined the independent union. Her labor dispute over her dismissal is pending at the Kampong Speu Provincial Court, he added.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of association, Labour rights, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to work
- HRD
- Labour rights defender
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Jan 31, 2024
- Event Description
Ten protesters, eight men and two women, were arrested today outside the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters in Colombo.
The group had been demonstrating since morning, demanding the arrest of former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella for his alleged involvement in a recent drug procurement scandal.
Police spokesperson DIG Nihal Talduwa confirmed the arrests and stated that despite repeated warnings and attempts to disperse the gathering peacefully, the protesters continued their sit-in protest, prompting police intervention.
Meanwhile, Former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella issued a statement this afternoon acknowledging the summons from the CID but claiming his inability to present himself due to conflicting commitments.
He cited a scheduled appearance at the Colombo High Court in another case and his participation in a meeting of the Ministerial Sub-committee on Public Expenditure Management, chaired by the President, as reasons for his absence.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jan 30, 2024
- Event Description
Activist Trinh Dinh Hoa reported to Project88 that he was abducted on Jan. 30 and interrogated for hours by Hanoi police. Three days earlier, while on his delivery route near the Ministry of Public Security, Hoa saw a large group of land rights protesters and stopped to take some photos, which he later posted on social media. On the day he was abducted, he got a delivery order to an address next to the police station of Buoi Ward. As soon as he got there, he was allegedly forced by a group of non-uniformed police into the station for questioning. Hoa was kept there from 11:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. The police focused their questioning on three videos he had posted about police abuse in 2016, the BOT protests in 2018, and a public gathering near Ho Chi Minh’s tomb in 2021. Before releasing Hoa, they asked him to sign an affidavit admitting that the Facebook account “Hoa DT” belonged to him, which he refused to do.
Trinh Dinh Hoa became an activist in 2015 when he participated in a memorial for soldiers killed by the Chinese Navy at Johnson Reef in 1988. In 2016, he joined protests for protection of trees in Hanoi and later against the Formosa environmental disaster. Then in 2018, he became actively involved in the nationwide protests against the proposed Cybersecurity Law. During those years, Hoa also attended–or tried to attend–the trials of other activists. In 2017, he was beaten by police and had his ID card and phone confiscated outside the courthouse where Tran Thi Nga was sentenced to eight years in prison for disseminating “anti-state propaganda.” During the Dong Tam trials in 2019, his home was monitored by police for an entire week. Hoa also participated in the translating of two books – one about the Formosa incident and the other about anti-democratic elections in Vietnam. Since 2019, however, Hoa has remained low-key and works as a deliveryman for a restaurant in Hanoi.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping, Intimidation and Threats, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Environmental rights defender, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Jan 29, 2024
- Event Description
Social media activist Piyath Nikeshala has been arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department, police said.
He was reportedly arrested after being summoned before the CID to obtain a statement over publishing a recorded telephone conversation between Public Security Minister Tiran Alles and another social media activist on his YouTube channel.
Piyath Nikeshala was also arrested on June last year over the live streaming on social media of the incident of burning President Ranil Wickremesinghe's private residence in Colombo on July 09, 2022
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Sri Lanka: pro-democracy defender arrested again
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Jan 28, 2024
- Event Description
On Sunday, January 28, Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) workers along with those from PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf) held separate protests at the Liberty Roundabout when the police cracked down upon both groups and arrested more than 50.
PTM had held a protest against the arrest of their party leader, Manzoor Pashteen. Not too far away the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf workers had also gathered for a demonstration regarding their election campaign. It was then that the city police cracked down and eventually arrested six workers of PTM and around 50 workers of PTI.
The PTI had begun the protest on the instructions of their party chief Imran Khan who had given a call to take a countrywide rally at 2 pm on Sunday, upon which PTI workers, including women, reached Liberty Chowk.
On the other hand, PTM Lahore also called a protest against the arrest of Manzoor Pashteen.
But even before these rallies began, a large number of police officers and the special Dolphin force were deployed around Liberty.
The police said that Section 144 had been enforced to maintain the law and order situation in Punjab and the permission of the administration and the police was necessary before any rally or protest.
Advocate Salman Akram Raja, the candidate supported by PTI from Constituency 128, while talking to Voicepk said that PTI was not being allowed to conduct election campaigns. “Our banners, and flags are being taken down every day, police are arresting our people, and we have to fight a legal battle. This behavior towards PTI should stop, as everyone has the right to campaign in the elections.”
Moin Wazir, a member of the PTM Lahore, said that on December 4, Manzoor Pashteen had left to participate in the Baloch protest in Turbat after addressing a sit-in in Chaman when he was abducted by unknown persons after which their supporters came to know that he had been sent to Adiala Jail according to an FIR filed in Islamabad. “When we came to Liberty Lahore to protest against this, the police arrested six of our colleagues,” he said.
When asked about the release of the workers, he said, “The police kept our colleagues locked up till late in the night and with the help of our team of lawyers, they were all released around 3 am.”
With only nine days left for the elections in the country, and with election campaigns in full swing, the imposition of Article 144 allows limited freedom of campaigning to a limited number of people. in an oppressive move by the government, protests, rallies, and meetings have been made subject to the permission of the administration and the police.As there are only nine days left for the elections in the country, and with election campaigns in full swing, in such a situation, Article 144 which has been implemented across Punjab, prohibits gatherings of four or more people, limiting freedom of campaigning to a limited number of people. in an oppressive move by the government, protests, rallies, and meetings have been made subject to the permission of the administration and the police.
- Impact of Event
- 5
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Minority rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jan 26, 2024
- Event Description
The South Bangkok Criminal Court on Friday (26 January) revoked bail for activist Netiporn Sanesangkhom, claiming she violated her bail condition by participating in a protest at the Ministry of Culture on 6 August 2023.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said that the Court cited a witness testimony that Netiporn sprayed paint onto Queen Suthida’s personal flag, which the Court said could damage the monarchy’s reputation. It ruled that she violated the condition she was given when granted bail on a royal defamation charge, i.e. that she must not repeat her offence.
TLHR said that Netiporn was also sentenced on the same day to 1 month in prison on a contempt of court charge for an incident on 19 October 2023, during which a police officer hit Netiporn with a baton and injured her. She decided not to file for bail in both cases and is now detained at the Central Women Correctional Institution.
An inquiry officer at Pathumwan Police Station filed a request in November 2023 to revoke bail for Netiporn and activist Tantawan Tuatulanon. The Court ruled not to revoke Tantawan’s bail, citing lack of evidence that she violated her bail condition while participating in the protest.
On 6 August 2023, activists staged a protest at the Ministry of Culture to demand that Senator and poet Naowarat Pongpaiboon be stripped of his national artist status after he abstained during the parliamentary vote to choose a Prime Minister when former Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat was nominated, saying that his abstention made him a hypocrite since he had initially pledged to vote for the Prime Minister nominated by the majority of the lower house.
18 activists who participated in the protest were subsequently charged with trespassing, destruction of property, using fireworks without permission, holding a public gathering without notifying the authorities, and vandalizing public property.
TLHR said last night (29 January) that Netiporn has been undergoing a dry hunger strike since Saturday (27 January) in protest of her detention.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jan 26, 2024
- Event Description
A Vietnam court in Phu Yen Province on Jan. 26 sentenced Nay Y Blang, a Rhade religious activist, to four and a half years in prison on charges of “abusing democratic freedoms” for allegedly holding unauthorized spiritual services in his home, state media reported. Blang did not have a lawyer defending him.
Blang, 48, was arrested on May 18, 2023, for his alleged engagement in the Central Highlands Evangelical Church of Christ, an indigenous religious organization that the Vietnamese government has banned. According to the state media, the Rhade religious activist has “admitted his wrongdoing and has asked for leniency.”
The Communist authorities in Vietnam have called this Protestant group a “foreign-based reactionary organization” that purportedly seeks to “incite ethnic minority groups in the Central Highlands and the surrounding areas to erode the national solidarity bloc, trigger secession, and promote the establishment of a separate state.” The indictment of Blang said that from the end of 2019 to 2022, he used his private home in Phu Yen to gather key figures of this religious sect for meetings and prayer sessions and hosted other online Christian fellowships.
Pastor Aga, the North Carolina-based founder of the Protestant sect, told RFA that his group is purely religious and that they do not conduct any anti-state activities nor attempt to establish a separate state. “We just want to express our religious beliefs, our religion, to worship God and follow the religion that suits us while still following the laws of the Vietnamese government,” Pastor Aga said.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of Religion and Belief, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Freedom of religion/belief activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Vietnam: religious rights defender arrested
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Initial Date
- Jan 25, 2024
- Event Description
Opposition activist Madina Koketaeva has been sentenced to 15 days in jail for attending a peaceful protest in Almaty against the detention of activists who were detained during unrest at the city's airport. Zhanar Balgabaeva, Koketaeva's lawyer, said her client was handed the sentence on January 25. Koketaeva says she was beaten during her arrest -- which coincided with the arrival of President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev on January 24 -- to the point where she needed hospitalization. "They are not going to let me go until Toqaev leaves the city," she told RFE/RL's Radio Azattyk.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- China
- Initial Date
- Jan 25, 2024
- Event Description
On 25 January 2024, the Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong’s top court, overturned the December 2022 ruling by the High Court acquitting woman human rights defender Chow Hang-tung of “inciting others to participate in an unauthorised assembly” in the 2021 vigil to commemorate the victims of the military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing in 1989. The woman human rights defender was sentenced to 15 months in prison earlier in January 2022.
The Court of Final Appeal ruled that Chow Hang-tung could not challenge the legality of a police ban on public assembly as a defense in criminal proceedings. It also rejected the High Court’s ruling that the police did not act lawfully and proportionately when it completely banned the 2021 Tiananmen Vigil on COVID prevention grounds.
The woman human rights defender remains in detention pending trial in another case in which she and other leaders of the now-defunct Hong Kong Alliance, which had organised previous Tiananmen vigils and campaigned for democratic reforms in mainland China, face the charge of “inciting subversion of State power” under the 2020 National Security Law for Hong Kong.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Lawyer, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jan 25, 2024
- Event Description
KARAPATAN condemns the forced disappearance of activist-writer Nelson Bautista and the illegal arrest of his companion Ademar Etol on trumped-up charges.
Bautista, 45 and Etol, 64, were arrested in Barangay Balingasan, Siay, Zamboanga Sibugay by police forces who barged into the house they were staying at around 2 a.m. of January 25, 2024.
Bautista has not been heard of since the arrest and remains missing to date. He is the 14th victim of enforced disappearance under the Marcos Jr. regime. Etol, who faces multiple trumped-up charges, including one for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition based on evidence planted by the police, is currently detained at the Siay Municipal Police Station.
Bautista was a campus journalist at the Notre Dame College in Kidapawan City and chaired the College Editors Guild of the Philippines in North Cotabato in 2004. He was also a convenor of Kalampag, an alliance of church people and civic groups in the same province. He later became a campaign officer and writer in Davao City for the Kilusang Mayo Uno. Since 2009, he has been a peasant and Lumad organizer, helping farmers, settlers and indigenous people cope with, and resist, the destruction of their environment due to climate crisis-induced disasters and large-scale mining operations.
KARAPATAN joins Bautista’s family, colleagues and friends in their urgent call to surface him. We further call on the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to investigate Bautista’s abduction and disappearance and Etol’s illegal arrest and detention, ensuring that the victims attain justice and the perpetrators are held to account.
Unless the persistent climate of impunity is shattered, Bautista and Etol will not be the last victims of state-perpetuated violence under the Marcos Jr. regime. KARAPATAN demands a stop to these relentless attacks on activists and on the people’s human rights.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Abduction/Kidnapping, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jan 24, 2024
- Event Description
In a shocking incident, a broadcast journalist was chased from his home on Wednesday night, waylaid by six unidentified men on the main road in Palladam's Tiruppur district and hacked with sickles even as he was on the phone with a police personnel frantically seeking help.
Nesa Prabhu, a reporter with News7 Tamil television channel, is now battling for his life at a private hospital in Coimbatore, 450 km from Chennai, with reports suggesting that he has about 62 cuts in his body. The journalist’s colleagues said his condition was “critical.”
The incident sent shockwaves across Tamil Nadu with journalists protesting outside the Coimbatore Collectorate and at various places across the state, including in Chennai, demanding action against the accused.
While there was no word of condemnation from the government even after 18 hours, Opposition Leader Edappadi K Palaniswami, Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai, and leaders of other political parties termed the attack on a journalist as a classic case of “break down of law and order situation” in the state and asked the DMK dispensation to “wake up” to the reality.
Tiruppur District Police said they have begun investigation into the case and have secured footage from CCTVs from a petrol bunk and a restaurant in the area where the reporter was brutally attacked. The police said they have formed four special teams to nab the accused.
The incident took place at around 9 pm on Wednesday, four hours after Nesa Prabhu called the police helpline seeking protection as he informed them that two people had come to his village, T Krishnapuram, in a vehicle that had no number plate and enquired about him. Chilling audio conversations between the journalist and police show how scared Nesa Prabhu was after being chased by the gang from his home.
The journalist had in the past few days reported about state-owned TASMAC liquor outlets in Palladam area functioning beyond their working hours and other stories, including an argument between a man and police. His colleagues said Nesa Prabhu called the police control room at around 4 pm on Wednesday following which he was asked to go to the police station and file a formal complaint.
In one of the conversations with the police, the journalist is heard telling them that four people had come in an SUV and a motorcycle – both had no number plate – separately and enquired about him from his village residents.
In another conversation, a recording of which was accessed by DH, the reporter is heard giving graphic details of the people who were following him in a two-wheeler after hiding near the restaurant.
“What is the registration number? What is the colour of the two-wheeler? What is the make of the vehicle?” – the reporter patiently answers every question posed by the police personnel on the other side. Nesa Prabhu also tells the police that people who chased him can be identified from the CCTV footage, besides pleading with the men in khaki to come and save his life.
It is believed that Nesa Prabhu kept the police on the line while he escaped from his home and came to the main road where was chased once again.
“Six people are chasing me,” Nesa Prabhu tells the police personnel who ask him whether he has come to a safe place. “Yes, I am in a safe place,” he tells police, hiding near the petrol bunk.
“They are six people and how many times do I keep hiding? I can’t even sleep properly. If there is someone with me, I will go and attack them. We can catch them as they can be identified from CCTV footage,” the journalist tells the police personnel, who tells him that he will inform the inspector of police.
Within a few seconds, the reporter shouts on the phone, “sir, they have come.” “What are you saying,” asks the policeman. “I am coming to the station. Please come, I can see five cars. They have come. My life is over,” Nesa Prabhu tells the policeman, before he was hacked by the gang.
Several journalist bodies, including Chennai Press Club, condemned the incident and asked the government to swing into action immediately and bring to book the perpetrators.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Initial Date
- Jan 23, 2024
- Event Description
Six Lao residents were arrested on charges related to their roles in connection to a multi-day protest against a government seizure of their land, which protesters told Radio Free Asia was the latest example of government corruption.
Four of the arrested residents, all men, were part of a group of about 20 protesters from Xang village in northern Laos’ Xieng Khouang province, who gathered on Tuesday morning to rally against their land being given to a wood processing company, a protester who requested anonymity for security reasons, told RFA Lao.
They were arrested on the second day of the protest.
When two women, members of the village’s Women’s Union, went to visit the arrested men and bring them food, they too were arrested, he said.
Sketchy title
The land grab is illegal because the Phengxay Import-Export Company bribed corrupt officials to make a fake land title on their land, the protester said.
A resident of the village told RFA that the land had been a part of the village for generations and had become a historical and cultural site for the community.
In a video clip published on social media, one of the protesters explained the situation.
“Right now, nobody can help us. Earlier, we relied on the district authorities to help us, but they wouldn’t,” he said. “Therefore, we gathered together today to call on other authorities to enforce the law, respect our rights, and to help us, who have been taken advantage of by this company.”
These protesters explained that the Phengxay Import-Export Company leased about one hectare (2.47 acres) of land, then built a wood processing factory on it for use in a ten-year lease between 2008 and 2018.
They extended the lease for five years from 2018 to 2023, meaning the lease has expired as of August 2023.
Later last year, the villagers wrote a letter to the Khoun District authorities asking for the land back.
It was then that they learned that the company possessed a land title issued by the district authorities.
Crowd dispersed
A witness to the arrest explained what he saw, saying, “The protest stopped after the police took away some protesters, which included members of the village authority,” he said. “I don’t know exactly how many and where they took those protesters to.”
A Xieng Khouang province official declined to discuss the protest or the arrests, only saying that the relevant officials were meeting to try to solve the conflict.
When RFA contacted a member of the Xieng Khouang Inspection Authority, that person said that the relevant officials were in a meeting discussing this matter at that time, and requested a call back in one day for more information.
- Impact of Event
- 6
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Land rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jan 23, 2024
- Event Description
Two lecturers and a former student at Chiang Mai University have been indicted on charges relating to an incident in October 2021, when students took over the University Art Centre after the Faculty of Fine Arts and the university administration prohibited them from showing their final theses, some of which dealt with social and political themes.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said yesterday (23 January) that Faculty of Fine Arts lecturers Sorayut Aiemueayut and Thasnai Sethaseree and Faculty of Fine Arts graduate Yotsunthorn Ruttapradid were indicted on charges of trespassing and destruction of property.
TLHR said that the public prosecutor originally intended to dismiss the charges, but the Commissioner of Provincial Police Region 5 objected to the dismissal. The public prosecutor eventually indicted them on both charges, stating that they destroyed university property worth 3,314 baht, including sets of chains, door bolts, and padlocks.
Thasnai raised questions during a press conference before reporting to the public prosecutor whether the university has committed perjury by filing the complaint, or if it is attempting to silence the three people charged.
Meanwhile, Yotsunthorn said that universities should not curb students’ education or silence them, especially in art programmes. He also said that if he hadn’t cut the chains, someone else would have done so.
“New knowledge needs as broad limits as possible. It shouldn’t be that you are locking gates and making it small, and stopping people from talking. For artists, not being able to exhibit our work is like being silenced. It’s not right, so we decided that we are going to keep on with our work. We just needed to cut the chains, because our [department] building is already in there,” he said.
In October 2021, students from the Media Arts and Design Department, along with several lecturers, occupied the Chiang Mai University Art Centre after 4th year students were prohibited from exhibiting their final theses in the Art Centre because some pieces addressed social and political themes.
The students said that after filing a request to use the University Art Centre to organize a thesis exhibition, the university administration repeatedly asked them for additional information and documents. Students were also required to submit information about every piece that was to be exhibited, and were told that some pieces would not be allowed, as the Faculty felt that they were politically inappropriate and unfit for public exhibition.
Several days before the exhibition, students found that electricity and water at the Media Arts and Design department building had been cut, allegedly on orders from the Faculty Dean. All exits from the building grounds were also locked with chains. The next day, students and lecturers cut the chains and occupied the University Art Centre to set up their exhibition.
Since participating in the exhibition is a requirement for the students to complete their project and receive a grade for the class, the university’s refusal to grant them permission to use the Art Centre caused concerns that the exhibition would not be ready for the schedule opening date, and put them at risk of failing their class. The students therefore filed for a temporary injunction with the Chiang Mai Administrative Court, which ruled in their favour but did not issue an order to the University because the students had already occupied the Art Centre and exhibited their theses.
After the exhibition, students filed a petition with the Chiang Mai University Council, the House Committee on Legal Affairs, Justice, and Human Rights, and the House Committee on Education to have Asawinee Wanjing, then Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts, and then-university President Dr Niwet Nantajit removed from office for attempting to prohibit students from exhibiting their theses and violating their academic freedom.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) also said that the university had violated academic freedom, which is a violation of human rights, by not informing the students whether they would be allowed to use the Art Centre in a timely manner. It also issued a recommendation to the Chiang Mai University administration that it should be careful when making decisions so as not to violate academic freedom.
The NHRC also recommended that the Faculty of Fine Arts should amend their regulation on requesting the use of the University Art Centre so that there is a clear time frame on when requests would be approved and so students and lecturers would be allowed to speak to the Art Centre Committee when seeking permission.
In November 2022, Asawinee filed a complaint against Sarayut, Thasnai, and Yotsunthorn. The complaint was filed on behalf of the university administration, who issued a letter granting Asawinee the power of attorney to do so.
In March 2021, Asawinee, along with several other faculty personnel attempted to remove students’ art projects from the Media Arts and Design Department building without first informing the students, claiming that some items constituted a possible violation of the law. The move prompted protests from students and lecturers. Students whose projects were going to be removed also filed charges of theft and destruction of property against Asawinee and the faculty personnel involved, as their projects were damaged during the incident and some went missing.
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Academic, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Related Events
- Thailand: lecturers, student face charges
- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Jan 22, 2024
- Event Description
A university student died in a prison in central Myanmar due to neglect, an activist told Radio Free Asia on Friday.
Su May Aung died in Magway Prison after receiving poor medical treatment and not having access to medication for chronic illnesses, the Magway University Student Union said.
She died on Monday after being in jail for nearly two years.
The 22-year-old was sentenced to 15 years in prison under Section 50j of the country’s notorious counter-terrorism laws for financing terrorism, a common charge for civilians donating to resistance groups. She was sentenced in early 2022.
Su May Aung had suffered from lupus, as well as liver and heart diseases before the arrest, but died while undergoing emergency treatment at Magway Hospital, the Magway University Student Union statement said. She died as a result of “poor medicine in the prison,” according to the statement.
RFA contacted Magway University Student Union representatives by phone on Friday to learn more details about Su May Aung’s death, but the group could not be reached by the time of publication.
Calls to the deputy director general of the junta’s Naypyidaw Prison Department also went unanswered.
The junta’s prison department never officially releases news about deaths in prisons across the country, said Thaik Tun Oo, a member of the Myanmar Political Prisoners Network.
“We have learned that prison officials have been ordered from higher levels not to leak the information of these incidents in prison, according to the prison officials,” he told Radio Free Asia on Friday.
“[Officials] are also pressuring and threatening the remaining family members not to speak to the media too.”
Su May Aung was a chemistry honors student at Magway University and opposed the military coup as part of the Civil Disobedience Movement after the junta seized power in Feb. 2021, the student union’s statement said, urging action from the international community.
According to a Myanmar Political Prisoners Network statement released on Dec. 31, 34 political prisoners died in jail in 2023. Among them, 18 were murdered and 16 people died as a result of medical neglect.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Death
- Rights Concerned
- Right to health, Right to life
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender, Student, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- India
- Initial Date
- Jan 19, 2024
- Event Description
In a demonstration against caste-based discrimination and unjust actions by the DU administration, Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad joined supporters rallying in favor of terminated teacher Ritu Singh on Friday. The march had been planned well in advance, scheduled for January 19 to mark the death anniversary of Rohith Vemula.
During the protest, Delhi Police briefly detained Chandrashekhar Azad and some students from Delhi University. However, they were later released. Dr Ritu Singh, formerly an ad-hoc professor in the psychology department at DU, has been staging a sit-in for the past 140 days after being terminated from her position. Singh had previously worked at DU's Daulat Ram College.
On Friday, the Bhim Army Chief Azad arrived amidst tight security arrangements made by Delhi Police. Barricades were set up on all routes leading to the North Campus.
This march had also witnessed the presence of Supreme Court advocate Mahmod Pracha. Delhi Police had removed tents and other belongings from Ritu Singh's protest site few days ago.
Dr. Singh had taken to the social media and sought community's support in the massive demonstration on January 19. Ritu alleges that the DU administration discriminated against her due to her Dalit identity. Dr Singh had levelled serious allegations against Daulat Ram College's principal, Savita Roy, four years ago. In 2020, she had protested for removing Roy from the post.
Few DU students participating in the march on Friday, stated that they had come to extend support and stand with Dr Ritu Singh in her fight against injustice, emphasizing that while Savita Roy has not been arrested, the protest led by Dr. Ritu is being suppressed. The case is presently in the court.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to liberty and security, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Minority rights defender, NGO staff, Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jan 19, 2024
- Event Description
A 28-year-old activist has been charged with royal defamation and violation of the Computer Crime Act over a Facebook photo of a man holding pieces of paper with profanities in front of a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn.
‘Ta’ Khathathon, an activist from the Thalugaz group, turned himself in to the police on Friday night (19 January). He learned that there was an arrest warrant for him after Natthaphon, a 21-year-old activist, was arrested and charged over the same Facebook photo.
The complaint against Khathathon and Natthaphon was filed by Anon Klinkaew, leader of the ultra-royalist group People’s Centre to Protect the Monarchy.
In a video clip posted on activist Tantawan Tuatulanon’s Facebook page on Friday afternoon, Khathathon announced that he was turning himself in to show that he is not a flight risk. He also said that he would refuse to be transferred to any police station other than Samran Rat Police Station, which is responsible for the case against him and Natthapon, who was transferred to Thung Song Hong Police Station.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) said that, while Khathathon and other activists were gathering in front of Samran Rat Police Station, a plainclothes officer approached Khathathon and read out his arrest warrant.
While held at Samran Rat Police Station, Khathathon refused to be fingerprinted and was subsequently charged for refusing to follow an officer’s order. TLHR noted that the police also asked to collect a sample of his DNA, but Khathathon and his lawyer refused.
After the inquiry officer informed him of his charges, the police took Khathathon to Thung Song Hong Police Station. In protest, Khathathon refused to get out of the police truck and spent the night in the vehicle, which was parked in front of the police station surrounded by metal railings.
The Criminal Court granted Khathathon bail using a security of 180,000 baht. He was also given the condition that he must not repeat the action for which he was accused or his bail will be revoked.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jan 19, 2024
- Event Description
Human rights lawyer Dang Dinh Manh on Feb. 20 wrote on social media that Ngo Oanh Phuong, an influential Facebook user, had been banned from traveling abroad and that she had been summoned by the Ho Chi Minh City Police Department for posting information critical of the conglomerate Vingroup.
According to Manh, Phuong, a businesswoman with thousands of followers on her Facebook account, often engages in charity work and raises concerns on different social issues. Phuong learned she was prohibited from traveling outside Vietnam in early October last year when she boarded a flight at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City.
Later, the Security Investigation Agency of Ho Chi Minh City Police summoned Phuong twice for questioning, on Jan. 19 and Jan. 30, stating that they had received a defamation complaint filed against her by Vingroup. Manh added that he could not access Phuong’s Facebook account, which she used as a platform to publish opinions and commentaries criticizing the business model of Vingroup - a crony conglomerate owned by Vietnam’s richest man, Pham Nhat Vuong.
Previously, in Dec. 2023, Tran Mai Son, a social media commentator known by his pen name “Sonnie Tran,” was allegedly detained by the Ho Chi Minh Police Department for days for questioning about his criticisms of the company. The account “Sonnie Tran” has over 3,000 followers on Facebook.
Son, an ardent critic of VinFast, the automobile subsidiary of Vingroup, frequently inquires about the company’s finances and suggests that it uses shell companies to hide debt and inflate its sales figures. Anonymous sources told VOA News that following the detention, the police confiscated all of Son’s electronic devices, interrogated him for 35 hours over four separate days, and threatened to charge him with Article 331 for “abusing democratic freedoms.”
In 2021, VinFast reported Tran Van Hoang, a customer and a local YouTuber, to the police after he posted a video complaining about the quality of his VinFast vehicle on his YouTube account. The company said Hoang’s complaints were made up to hurt its reputation, and its lawyers had “sufficient grounds to prove it is not just a normal complaint.” The Vietnam-owned automaker added that if a similar incident occurred when operating in the United States, they “will also submit a request to the authorities in accordance with local law.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Corporation Corporation (others)
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Indonesia
- Initial Date
- Jan 19, 2024
- Event Description
The South Sulawesi Police disbanded a discussion held by Forum Anomali and the Muhammadiyah Student Association or IMM Parepare in Parepare City, South Sulawesi today, Friday, January 19, 2024. The discussion discussed the future and anomalies of democracy today.
The speakers in the discussion were UI BEM Chair Melki Sedek Huang, UGM KM BEM Chair Gielbran M. Noor, Unpad BEM Chair Muhammad Haikal, and Sema Paramadina Secretary General Afiq Naufal. They are also the founders of Forum Anomali, which initiated the discussion.
According to Melki, Parepare Police Chief Arman Muis had urged the organizers to cancel the event before it took place. "Reportedly it is a directive from the South Sulawesi Police," Melki said when contacted via WhatsApp message, Friday, January 19, 2024.
Melki said that his side was not allowed to hold discussions, carry out criticism, and bring corn, which is a symbol of their movement. "There was almost a conflict, but we still held the discussion in the right place," he said.
When the event took place, Melki said the Parepare Police Chief came to the location in uniform to supervise the discussion. He said the Parepare Police Chief directed the press not to cover the event. "Even though they have been invited," said Melki Sedek Huang.
Regarding the number of personnel who dispersed the discussion, Melki said he did not count exactly.
However, he said there were approximately ten to twenty personnel.
Until now, Melki admitted that he did not know the reason why the discussion was disbanded."We only heard a police officer stating that this was the direction of the South Sulawesi Police," he said.
Forum Anomali was founded by Melki, Gielbran, Haikal, and Afiq to spread the understanding of safeguarding democracy to many regions. Before holding the discussion, they and the students held a #DemocracyJagung action in Makassar on Thursday, January 18, 2024,
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of association, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jan 19, 2024
- Event Description
ACT Teachers party list Rep. France Castro and some former legislators on Friday renewed calls for the junking of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) as they rallied behind the filing of a counter-affidavit on behalf of four activists who were labeled as terrorists by the military.
The activists and their supporters gathered in front of the Cabanatuan Justice Hall to assail the ATA, which they said was “abused” by the Philippine Army to justify the complaints it filed against Bayan Muna secretary general Nathanael Santiago and three others in the Nueva Ecija provincial prosecutor’s office last year.
Complaints for violation of the provisions of the ATA or Republic Act No. 11479, specifically Sections 4a (causing death or serious bodily injury) and 4d (possession of weapons and explosives), were lodged against Santiago, Ansusa San Gabriel, Rosario Brenda Gonzalez and Servillano “Jun” Luna Jr.
These stemmed from a reported encounter between soldiers from the Army’s 84th Infantry Battalion (IB) and suspected members of Kilusang Larangang Gerilya-Sierra Madre (KLG-SM) in Barangay San Fernando, Laur town in Nueva Ecija, on Oct. 8 last year.
Santiago’s group was also accused of attempted murder, murder and attack on civilians under Republic Act No. 9851, or the domestic law on the International Humanitarian Law (IHL).
Gonzalez is a convener of Scent, an organization involved in development work, while San Gabriel is a church lay worker who volunteers for the Bulacan Ecumenical Forum and is engaged in human rights and environmental advocacy.
Luna, on the other hand, is the campaign director and former secretary general of Anakpawis party list.
They were represented by lawyer Ephraim Cortez of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers during the filing of the counter-affidavit.
First Lt. Michael Regalario of the Army’s 84th IB filed the complaints against the activists last year, according to a case briefer from ACT.
Santiago and the three militant leaders were named among the 20 people that the soldiers allegedly identified during the encounter that left one dead. It was not immediately known if the fatality was a civilian or one of the government soldiers.
Indicted On Jan. 19, the investigating prosecutor recommended the indictment of all respondents for ATA and the dismissal of attempted murder and murder complaints on the ground that “the complainants failed to ascribe the acts to any of the respondents, and that they failed to establish conspiracy,” the Inquirer learned.
The prosecutor also recommended dismissal of IHL charges for the alleged failure of the complainants to establish the act as a violation of IHL.
But Cortez said the respondents were not informed of their cases then, as summons were addressed somewhere in Aurora province while his clients were based in Metro Manila.
This prompted them to file a petition for reinvestigation. They were allowed to file counteraffidavit on Friday.
Castro said they wanted to belie charges against the four activists through the filing of the counter-affidavit.
Former Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said Santiago was at a meeting on the day the encounter broke out. He said reports indicated that the clash happened at night.
Facial recognition? Cortez also assailed allegations that the complainant saw Santiago and the three other activists during the firefight and were able to identify them because they were shown photographs of suspected KLG-SM members in the operating area prior to the operation.
“They (the military) said the encounter happened in a remote area and [they were] far. So it’s impossible [for facial recognition], and the Supreme Court has made many decisions stating that such identification is impossible, in the context of an ambush or military encounter,” Cortez said.
The lawyer added: “In a military encounter, the first thing to consider is how to avoid bullets and how to fire back.”
- Impact of Event
- 3
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Enactment of repressive legislation and policies, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, Environmental rights defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military, Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Philippines
- Initial Date
- Jan 17, 2024
- Event Description
KARAPATAN condemns the escalating attacks against peasant activists and leaders perpetrated by State security forces.
On January 17, 2024, two peasant activists were gunned down in Negros Occidental by elements of the 62nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army. According to reports reaching Karapatan, Dionisio Baloy, 67, a member of the Kaisahan sa Gamay’ng Mag-uuma sa Oriental Negros (KAUGMAON-Guihulngan Chapter) and fellow farmer Bernard Torres Sr., who also works as a habal-habal driver and is a member of UNDOC/PISTON – Guihulngan Chapter, were dragged out of the house they were staying at Hacienda Gomez, Barangay Sag-ang, La Castellana, Negros Occidental by operating troops of the 62nd IBPA, interrogated and tortured before being shot.
To justify the cold-blooded killing of the two farmers, the 62nd IBPA later released a statement claiming that the Baloy and Torres were killed in a so-called armed encounter between the soldiers and the New People’s Army.
Baloy and Torres had both been red-tagged and harassed by the military in their communities in Guihulngan, Negros Oriental, forcing them and their families to transfer residence. Like many other victims of red-tagging and harassment, they ended up becoming victims of graver human rights violations.
These latest killings of peasant activists have prompted KARAPATAN to sound the alarm on two monitored incidents of harassment and terrorist-tagging against Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas chairperson Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos. KMP reported that on January 3 and 15 this year, motorcycle-riding men were inquiring on the whereabouts and residence of Ramos in Malolos City. In one incident, one of the intelligence agents reportedly said: “Taga-saan ba si Danilo Ramos? Matagal na namin siyang hinahanap kasi terorista siya. (Where is Danilo Ramos? We have been looking for him because he is a terrorist.)
Ramos had also reported being subjected to surveillance last August 2023. These cases of harassment and terrorist-tagging pose a direct threat to the lives of Ka Daning, his family and other peasant leaders and members of the KMP and the progressive peasant movement.
Karapatan has documented that 59 out of the 87 victims of extrajudicial killings under the Marcos Jr. regime (or two-thirds) are peasants, many of them falsely accused of being NPA members or supporters of “communist terrorist groups” and killed in false encounters. Moreover, 65 of the 87 victims (or three-fourths) are from the counterinsurgency-battered regions of Eastern Visayas, Bicol and Western Visayas —regions singled out for more intensified military and police deployment and operations under Rodrigo Duterte’s Memorandum Order No. 32, which Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has not rescinded.
Karapatan calls for a stop to the brutal counter-insurgency war that has been marked by escalating attacks against the peasantry and rural communities from Duterte’s time to the present. Using a militarist approach to end the armed conflict in the countryside will only result in more human rights violations against the peasantry and will not resolve its deep-seated roots.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Armed forces/ Military
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Sri Lanka
- Initial Date
- Jan 17, 2024
- Event Description
The Maligakanda Magistrate's Court issued an order today barring nine individuals, including the convener of the Inter-University Students' Federation, from holding protests and demonstrations on several key roads in Colombo.
The court order comes in response to a request filed by the Maradana Police OIC, who informed the court about plans for a student march starting near Viharamaha Devi Park and moving towards the Colombo Fort railway station via the Lipton Roundabout.
The court order prohibits the nine individuals, including the IUSF convener, from holding demonstrations and marches on Kularatne Mawatha, Orabi Pasha Mawatha, Sangharaja Mawatha, Deans Road, Darley Road, Hospital Square, and surrounding roads and sidewalks.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Other (e.g. undefined, organisation, community)
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment, Restrictions on Movement
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly, Freedom of movement, Freedom of expression Offline, Right to Protest
- HRD
- Student
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Viet Nam
- Initial Date
- Jan 17, 2024
- Event Description
The correctional authorities of Gia Trung Prison in Gia Lai Province have disciplined prisoner of conscience Truong Van Dung for allegedly insulting prison personnel. Dung’s wife, Nghiem Thi Hop, told Radio Free Asia (RFA) about his punishment. Dung is serving a six-year prison sentence on accusations of “distributing anti-state propaganda,” a violation of Article 117 in Vietnam’s Penal Code.
According to Gia Trung Prison, Dung will not be allowed visitations or to receive supplies and handwritten mail from his family for a month, starting from Jan. 16. Hop said she was worried about Dung as the Lunar New Year, a national holiday in Vietnam, was approaching. The prison added that after the punishment concludes on Feb. 17, Dung can only see his family once every two months, instead of once a month, until he is “progressively rehabilitated.”
On Jan. 3, Dung’s family sent some gifts to him in prison, including a poster prepared by the Viet Tan Party, which is deemed a “terrorist organization” by the Vietnamese government. The organization named Dung the recipient of its 2023 Le Dinh Luong Human Rights Award. When the parcel containing the poster arrived a week later, the warden examined it and then refused to let Dung receive it. A tense argument broke out between him and the correctional officers, leading to disciplinary action.
According to a notice from Gia Trung Prison dated Jan. 17, Truong Van Dung was disciplined for “insulting the honor and dignity of others,” but they did not elaborate on what he said. On Nov. 9, 2023, Dung was transferred from An Diem Prison in Quang Nam Province to Gia Trung Prison in Gia Lai Province, hundreds of miles from his home in Hanoi. The Vietnamese authorities often send human rights activists to prisons far from their homes to make it difficult for family members to visit them often.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Right to property
- HRD
- Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Malaysia
- Initial Date
- Jan 17, 2024
- Event Description
Two Malaysian filmmakers could face jail after a Kuala Lumpur court on Wednesday charged them with insulting “religious feelings” over a movie exploring the afterlife, which has never been shown in the country and had already been pulled from Hong Kong streaming platform Viu.
Director Khairi Jailani and producer Tan Meng Kheng are the first Malaysian filmmakers to face a criminal charge over film content in the Muslim-majority country, where creatives say the march of religious conservatism is increasingly smothering cultural output. The pair earlier pleaded not guilty to the charge of deliberately “wounding the religious feelings of any persons” in their banned film “ Mentega Terbang”, which is a play on words in Malay, literally translated as butterfly.
Under Section 298 of the Penal Code, they face a one-year prison sentence with fines if convicted.
The 104-minute film, which was banned in Malaysia last September, revolves around a young Malay Muslim girl who comes to terms with losing her terminally ill mother through researching what other religions say about life after death.
Accused of promoting apostasy, the film was pulled from streamer Viu after the controversy caused by the Malaysian ban. While multiethnic and multicultural, Islam is Malaysia’s state religion with a legal code and enforcement agencies to preserve orthodoxy.
Khairi was released on a 6,000 ringgit (US$1,280) bail while Tan paid 6,500 ringgit (US$1,385), pending a trial date. Both were slapped with gag orders.
The duo have already faced death threats in a public backlash and probes by police and religious authorities since the release of the movie on Viu last year.
The film remains available on YouTube.
Online, critics of the film rejoiced at the court action against the pair, saying they deserve to be punished for “insulting Islam” and should repent.
This includes scriptwriter Zabidi Mohamed, who has been a vocal opponent of the film from the start, applauding the move to haul Khairi and Tan to court, calling the film “blasphemous” and carrying “liberal thinking”.
“As a Muslim, I hold to the belief that the truth is only with Islam and hold to the religious belief that God is pleased with is only Islam,” he said in a Facebook post on Tuesday, adding that he was aware of the impending indictment a week earlier.
On the other side of a divided society, the charge was met with dismay with even some government backbenchers in parliament questioning the move.
“After more than 60 years of nation-building, are we losing more spaces and places for discussions, reflections, and creation?” asked Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung on X (formerly Twitter).
Activist Mahi Ramakrishnan, meanwhile, called for solidarity with the filmmakers, actors and crew.
“Charging the director and producer takes a whack at their creative license, free speech and freedom of expression,” she said.
Last April, the filmmakers and cast were summoned by the police for questioning, as well as by the Kuala Lumpur Islamic religious authorities over the movie.
This came just one month after unknown assailants trashed and splashed paint and corrosive liquid on Khairi and actor Arjun Thanaraju’s cars, with messages calling for their death, saying the film “challenges Islam”.
The attacks hurled at the filmmakers marked the lowest point of Malaysian cinema in 2023, in what is otherwise a vibrant year that saw a string of local flicks gaining recognition and winning accolades at international film festivals.
“The world now knows Malaysia,” National Film Development Corporation’s chairman Kamil Othman said in December. “Malaysian cinema is making its wave so our duty and challenge is that it continues.”
Despite the recognition by the film board, Malaysian authorities continue to keep Malaysian cinema on a short leash with Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil distancing the government from the straight-to-streaming film, alluding that the filmmakers had crossed the line in his response to it last March.
“I want to remind everyone that even if we want to be filmmakers, we still have laws that apply to any work we produce, so we have to respect those laws,” Fahmi said.
Fahmi, however, condemned the threats made against the filmmakers, crew and cast, and urged Malaysians not to take the law into their own hands following the incident.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of Religion and Belief, Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Artist
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Thailand
- Initial Date
- Jan 17, 2024
- Event Description
The Observatory has been informed about the new conviction, prison sentence, and ongoing arbitrary detention of Mr Anon Nampa, prominent pro-democracy activist and human rights lawyer.
On January 17, 2024, the Bangkok Criminal Court found Anon Nampa guilty under Article 112 of the Thailand Criminal Code (“lèse-majesté”) [1] and Section 14(3) of the Computer Crimes Act [2] and sentenced him to four years in prison. These charges stemmed from three Facebook posts he published on January 1 and 3, 2021, questioning the enforcement of Article 112 of the Criminal Code and advocating for the right to freedom of expression in connection with criticism of the Thai monarchy [3] reforms.
At the time of publication of this Urgent Appeal, Mr Anon remains detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison, where he has been arbitrarily imprisoned since his previous conviction on “lèse-majesté” charges on September 26, 2023.
The Observatory recalls that this is not the first conviction of Mr Anon under Article 112 of the Criminal Code. On September 26, 2023, the Criminal Court sentenced him to four years in prison on one count of “lèse-majesté”, and a fine of 20,000 baht (approximately 525 Euros) for violation of the Emergency Decree. This case stemmed from a speech Mr Anon delivered on October 14, 2020, at a peaceful demonstration at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument, where protesters had gathered to call on the government to comply with the three demands put forward by the pro-democracy movement that began in February 2020, including a reform of the Thai monarchy. Mr Anon was charged with “lèse-majesté” over his statements referring to King Rama X as the person with the sole authority to order the dispersal of protests, instead of the riot police. On September 30, 2023, the Court of Appeals rejected Mr Anon’s request for bail, citing the severity of his sentence and the fact that he would be a flight risk, if released on bail.
The Observatory further recalls that Anon Nampa is currently facing legal action in connection with 12 more “lèse-majesté” cases. Mr Anon was previously arbitrarily detained twice at the Bangkok Remand Prison: the first time for 113 days, from February 9 to June 1, 2021, on charges of “lèse-majesté” and “sedition” (Article 116 of Thailand Criminal Code) in connection with a speech concerning the Thai monarchy he made at a peaceful pro-democracy protest at Bangkok’s Sanam Luang on September 19, 2020; and the second time for 202 days, from August 11, 2021, to February 28, 2022, in relation to 12 other “lèse-majesté” cases. His temporary release requests were denied numerous times.
The Observatory notes with concern that between November 24, 2020, and December 31, 2023, 262 people, including many human rights defenders and 20 minors, were charged under Article 112 of the Criminal Code. Fifteen of them are currently detained pending trial, and six more serving prison sentences.
The Observatory strongly condemns the new conviction, sentencing, and ongoing arbitrary detention of Anon Nampa, and the ongoing judicial harassment against him, which seem to be only aimed at punishing him for his legitimate human rights activities and the exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly.
The Observatory calls on the Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally release him and all other arbitrarily detained human rights defenders in the country and to put an end to the judicial harassment against them.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Online, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Lawyer, Pro-democracy defender
- Perpetrator-State
- Judiciary
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Kyrgyzstan
- Initial Date
- Jan 16, 2024
- Event Description
Responding to a series of detentions of journalists affiliated with independent Kyrgyzstani media outlets and raids on their homes and offices, Maisy Weicherding, Amnesty International’s Central Asia Researcher, said:
“The actions of the Kyrgyzstani authorities represent a new overt attack on the right to freedom of expression and seriously undermine the country’s obligations under international human rights law. Dawn raids on journalists’ homes, detaining them under vague and overly-broad charges, and denying them access to legal representation, are worrying signs of an escalation in the crackdown on critical voices in Kyrgyzstan.
“The use of vague and unsubstantiated charges like ‘inciting unrest’ and ‘propaganda of war’ blatantly exposes the arbitrary nature of these criminal proceedings. The authorities in Kyrgyzstan must stop their repression of dissent and immediately and unconditionally free these journalists and all others who have been thrown behind bars solely for freely expressing their views and ideas.”
The authorities in Kyrgyzstan must stop their repression of dissent and immediately and unconditionally free these journalists and all others who have been thrown behind bars solely for freely expressing their views and ideas
Maisy Weicherding, Amnesty International’s Central Asia Researcher Background
On 16 January, during a heavy-handed police operation, 11 journalists, including those associated with “Ait Ait Dese” and Temirov Live projects, were taken to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for interrogation. Among those targeted was Makhabat Tazhibek-kyzy, the wife of investigative journalist Bolot Temirov, who was previously expelled from Kyrgyzstan.
The 11 journalists are known for their past or current involvement with Temirov’s projects. Upon being brought in for questioning, they were denied access to a lawyer.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the mass searches and detentions were part of a criminal investigation into alleged “calls for active disobedience […] and for mass riots, as well as calls for violence against citizens” (Article 278(3) of the Criminal Code) stemming from non-specified “content on social media.”
On 15 January, law enforcement conducted a search at the 24.kg news agency in Bishkek, confiscating equipment and sealing the office as part of a criminal case under “propaganda of war” (Article 497 of the Criminal Code). The agency’s top management, including General Director Asel Otorbaeva and Editor-in-Chief Anton Lymar, were detained for questioning but later released. They were summoned for interrogation again on 17 January.
Amnesty International has documented the deterioration of the right to freedom of expression in Kyrgyzstan, including the closure or restriction of the activities of independent media outlets and the criminal prosecution of activists, including in the so-called “Kempir-Abad case.”
On 17 January 2024, Pervomaiskiy district court of Bishkek sent 11 journalists and human rights defenders, current and former reporters of the Temirov Live investigative group, to pretrial detention until 13 March 2024. Among them are Makhabat Tazhibek kyzy, Sapar Akunbekov, Ayke Beishekeeva, Joodar Buzumov, Aktilek Kaparov, Saipidin Sultanaliev, Tynystan Asypbek, Maksat Tajibek uulu, Azamat Ishenbekov, Zhumabek Turdaliev and Akyl Orozbekov. All human rights defenders are suspected in "calling for mass civil unrest" whereas Makhabat Tazhibek kyzy and Azamat Ishenbekov are also labelled as “organizers” of the said mass civil unrest. If found guilty, Makhabat Tazhibek kyzy and Azamat Ishenbekov can face up to 10 years in prison, and the rest of the defenders – up to 8 years of imprisonment.
Temirov Live is a YouTube-based media outlet that investigates and reports on corruption of state and non-state actors in Kyrgyzstan. It was founded in 2020 by Bolot Temirov, a Kyrgyzstani human rights defender and prominent journalist whose work focuses on investigating corruption. Ayt Ayt Dese is a YouTube-based project which aims at popularising human rights issues by performing and publishing folk songs on human rights topics. Among others, in its songs Ayt Ayt Dese has covered the investigations of Temirov Live.
- Impact of Event
- 11
- Gender of HRD
- Man, Woman
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention, Denial Fair Trial, Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline, Right to fair trial, Right to liberty and security
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Government, Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Country
- Pakistan
- Initial Date
- Jan 15, 2024
- Event Description
The Government of Pakistan must guarantee the right to peaceful protest across the country, Amnesty International said today as the Baloch Long March protesters were forced to end their month-long sit-in protest in Islamabad following repeated harassment by the authorities.
Hundreds of women in the Baloch Long March journeyed about a thousand miles from Turbat in the southwestern province of Balochistan to the capital city, Islamabad to protest the alleged extrajudicial killing of young Baloch men late last year.
The peaceful protesters, consisting largely of families of victims of enforced disappearances including people as old as 80 and children as young as two years old, had been sleeping in near-freezing temperatures at the sit-in at the National Press Club, Islamabad since 22 December 2023. The Pakistani authorities mounted a campaign of disinformation against them and subjected them to repeated intimidation, arbitrary arrests and detentions.
“The Pakistani authorities should be ashamed of the harassment meted out to the Baloch Long March protestors. This is not the end the Baloch women would have hoped for when undertaking the perilous journey with their children to demand justice for their families. The authorities have been heartlessly indifferent to the plight and demands of the peaceful protestors camped out in the severe cold for the past month,” said Carolyn Horn, Programme Director, Law and Policy at Amnesty International.
The Pakistani authorities should be ashamed of the harassment meted out to the Baloch Long March protestors.
Carolyn Horn, Programme Director, Law and Policy at Amnesty International “The denial of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly have compounded the tremendous social, financial and psychological costs borne by the families of the disappeared. The voices of the people must not be ignored in the run up to the national elections in Pakistan. Human rights must be upheld before, during and after the elections.”
‘Pain and helplessness’ Speaking with Amnesty International, protest organizer Mahrang Baloch said, “The anti-Baloch attitudes of the state, judiciary, media and state-aligned intellectuals have forced us to conclude this phase of our protest. Over the past month, our peaceful protest has been surrounded from all sides by police … (and) we have been subjected to harassment, profiling and threats on a daily basis.”
On 21 January, entry to the ‘International Oppressed Peoples Conference’ organized at the sit-in was denied by police through harassment of attendees and the placement of barbed wire around the area.
Previously, on 2 January, the police had prevented supplies of food, tents and blankets from reaching the sit-in protesters. Electricity to the protest site was also temporarily cut off with protestors complaining of extremely weak mobile signals that prevented them from issuing media updates from the protest site.
The pain of sitting in the cold was better than the pain and helplessness we feel when we go back home.
A protestor “We had to take turns to sleep because blankets were limited. But even then, the pain of sitting in the cold was better than the pain and helplessness we feel when we go back home,” said one of the protestors.
First Information Reports (FIRs) – which initiate criminal proceedings – were filed against protestors from across the country. Amnesty International verified at least 13 such FIRs from Balochistan (Naal, Kohlu, and Hub), Sindh (Karachi, Mirpur Khas and Khairpur), Islamabad and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Dera Ismail Khan). Protestors have been charged with a wide range of offences, including terrorism, sedition, unlawful assembly, rioting, hate speech, dacoity, unlawful use of loudspeakers and damage to public property.
Detentions and arbitrary arrests On 4 December 2023, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) leader Manzoor Pashteen was attacked by security forces and taken into custody while on his way to the Turbat sit-in. He remains in custody despite having been granted bail three times since then.
At least 20 participants in the march were unlawfully detained on 17 December 2023 in Dera Ghazi Khan, Punjab. Video evidence reviewed by Amnesty confirmed the use of police batons against peaceful protestors, including women. Similarly, batons were used to disperse protestors as they entered Surab, Balochistan on 10 December 2023, resulting in injuries to several protestors.
On 20 December 2023, when the march reached Islamabad, the police used tear gas, water cannons and batons against protestors entering the city and those at the National Press Club. Amnesty International verified the use of force against peaceful protestors through videos and eyewitness accounts immediately after the incident.
On 21 December 2023, two FIRs were registered against the protestors in Islamabad by police and as a result, more than 300 protestors were indiscriminately arrested including women, children, students, older persons, and a woman journalist. Many of the detainees were not given the opportunity to contact their families or arrange for a lawyer themselves.
‘Abused and traumatized’ Forty-seven women protestors and five children were illegally detained at G-7 Womens’ Police Station, Islamabad for more than 24 hours between 21 and 22 December 2023. During this detention, the police made several attempts to forcibly transport some of these protestors to Quetta. These attempts were thwarted only after interventions from civil society and journalists present at the scene.
Some of the children with us were so traumatized that they could not stop shaking from fear.
A woman detainee Speaking with Amnesty International a woman detainee said, “some of the children with us were so traumatized that they could not stop shaking from fear… Even now when (they see) police, the children are terrified… This fear will stay with them even when they grow up.”
Another woman detainee who had been in custody and subjected to verbal abuse said, “they told us that we were here to get attention and get famous.”
While most of the protestors were subsequently released, the cases filed against them for alleged rioting, unlawful assembly, dacoity, and property damage have not been quashed or withdrawn.
Forced to self-censor
Cases have been registered against journalists, including Masood Ahmed Lehri for covering a rally held on 15 January 2024 in Wadh, Balochistan, in support of the sit-in. Fatima Razzak, a journalist for local media outlet Lok Sujag, was detained and questioned on 24 December 2023. She was asked to turn in her devices to the authorities and threatened with consequences for her reporting of the Baloch protest.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of expression Offline
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Police
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending